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ENGLAND 


PICTURESQUE  and  DESCRIPTIVE 


REMINISCENCES  OF  FOREIGN  TRAVEL 


BY 

JOEL    COOK 


ILLUSTRATED 

IN   TWO   VOLUMES 

Vol.  I 


PHILADELPHIA 

HENRY    T.   COATES    &    CO, 
I  900 


Copyright, 

HENRY  T.  COAXES  &  CO., 

1899. 


College 
Library 

C77e 

V.I 

INTRODUCTION. 


No  land  possesses  greater  attractions  for  the 
American  tourist  than  England.  It  was  the  home 
of  his  forefathers ;  its  history  is  to  a  great  extent 
the  history  of  his  own  country ;  and  he  is  bound  to 
it  by  the  powerful  ties  of  consanguinity,  language, 
laws,  and  customs.  When  the  American  treads  the 
busy  London  streets,  threads  the  intricacies  of  the 
Liverpool  docks  and  shipping,  wanders  along  the 
green  lanes  of  Devonshire,  climbs  Alnwick's  castel- 
lated walls,  or  floats  upon  the  placid  bosom  of  the 
picturesque  Wye,  he  seems  almost  as  much  at  home 
as  in  his  native  land.  But,  apart  from  these  con- 
siderations of  common  Anglo-Saxon  paternity,  no 
country  in  the  world  is  more  interesting  to  the  in- 
telligent traveller  than  England.  The  British 
system  of  entail,  whatever  may  be  the  opinion  of  its 
political  and  economic  merits,  has  built  up  vast 
estates  and  preserved  the  stately  homes,  renowned 
castles,  and  ivy-clad  ruins  of  ancient  and  celebrated 
structures,  to  an  extent  and  variety  that  no  other 
land  can  show.  The  remains  of  the  abbeys,  castles, 
churches,  and  ancient  fortresses  in  England  and 
Wales  that  war  and  time  toorether  have    crumbled 


1157895 


iv  INTRODrCTION. 

and  scarred  tell  tlie  history  of  centuries,  while  count- 
less legends  of  the  olden  time  are  revived  as  the 
tourist  passes  them  in  review.  England,  too,  has 
other  charms  than  these,  l^ritish  scenery,  though 
not  always  equal  in  sublimity  and  grandeur  to  that 
displayed  in  many  parts  of  our  own  country,  is  ex- 
ceedingly beautiful,  and  has  always  been  a  fruitful 
theme  of  song  and  story. 

"  The  splendor  falls  on  ca«tlewall.s 
And  snowv  siuntniu  old  in  story: 
The  long  ligiit  shakes  across  the  lakes, 
And  the  wild  cataract  leajxs  in  glory." 

Yet  there  are  few  satisfactory  and  comprehensive 
books  about  this  land  that  is  so  full  of  renowned 
memorials  of  the  past  and  so  generously  gifted  by 
Nature.  Such  books  as  there  are  either  cover  a  few 
counties  or  are  devoted  only  to  local  description,  or 
else  are  merely  guide-books.  The  present  work  is 
believed  to  be  the  first  attempt  to  give  in  attractive 
form  a  book  which  will  serve  not  only  as  a  guide 
to  those  visiting  England  and  Wales,  but  also  as  an 
agreeable  reminiscence  to  others,  who  will  find  that 
its  pages  treat  of  familiar  scenes.  It  would  be  im- 
possible to  describe  everything  within  the  brief 
compass  of  a  single  book,  but  it  is  believed  that 
nearly  all  the  more  prominent  places  in  England  and 
Wales  are  included,  with  enough  of  their  history 
and  legend  to  make  the  description  interesting. 


INTRODUCTION.  V 

The  work  has  been  arranged  in  ten  tours,  Avitli 
Liverpool  and  London  as  the  chief  starting-points, 
and  each  route  follows  the  lines  upon  which  the 
sightseer  generally  advances  in  the  respective  direc- 
tions taken.  Such  is  probably  the  most  convenient 
form  for  the  travelling  reader,  as  the  author  has 
found  from  experience,  while  a  comprehensive  index 
will  make  reference  easy  to  different  localities  and 
persons.  Without  further  introduction  it  is  pre- 
sented to  the  public,  in  the  confident  belief  that  the 
interest  developed  in  its  subject  Avill  excuse  any 
shortcomings  that  may  be  found  in  its  pages. 


CONTENTS. 


I. 

LIVERPOOL  WESTWARD  TO  THE  WELSH  COAST. 

PAGE 

Liverpool — Birkenhead — Knowsley  Hall — Chester — Cheshire 
— Eaton  Hall — Hawarden  Castle — Bidston — Congleton — 
Beeston  Castle — The  river  Dee — Llangollen — Valle-Crucis 
Abbey — Dinas  Bran — Wynnstay — Pont  Cysylltau — Chirk 
Castle  —  Bangor-ys-Coed  —  Holt — Wrexham — The  Sands 
o'  Dee — North  Wnles — Flint  Castle — Rhuddlan  Castle — 
Mold — Denbigh — St.  Asaph — Holywell — Powys  Castle — 
The  Menai  Strait — Anglesea — Beaumaris  Castle — Bangor 
— Penrhyn  Castle — Plas  Newydd — Caernarvon  Castle — 
Ancient  Segontium  —  Conway  Castle — Bettws-y-Coed — 
Mount  Snowdon — Port  Madoc — Coast  of  Merioneth — 
Barmouth — St.  Patrick's  Causeway — Mawddach  Vale — 
Cader  Idris — Dolgelly — Bala  Lake — Aberysthwith — Har- 
lech Castle— Holyhead     3 

II. 

LIVERPOOL  NORTHWARD  TO  THE  SCOTTISH 
BORDER. 

Lancashire — Warrington — Manchester — Fumess  Abbey — The 
Ribble — Stonyhurst^Lancaster  Castle — Isle  of  Man — 
Castletown — Rushen  Castle — Peele  Castle — The  Lake 
Country — AVlndermere — Lodore  Fall  —  Derwentwater  — 
Keswick — Greta  Hall — Southey,  Wordsworth,  and  Cole- 
ridge— Skiddaw — The  Border  Castles — Kendal  Castle — 
Brougham  Hall — The  Sol  way — Carlisle  Castle — Scaleby 
Castle — Naworth — Lord  William  Howard 45 


viii  CXDNTENTS. 

III. 

LIVERPOOL,   TIIROUr.II    TIIK    MIDLAND   COUNTIES, 
TO  LONDON. 

PAGE 

The  Peak  of  IVrhysliirc  — C'xxtlcfon— Bess  of  Hiirdwicke — 
Ilardwitke  Hull  -l>«>ls<)VtT  Castle — The  Wye  and  the 
Derwent— lUixton — Hakewell — Iladdon  Hall— The  King 
of  the  Peak— Dorothy  Vernon — KowsK-y — The  Peacock 
Inn — C'hatswortli — The  Victoria  liegia  — Matlock  —  Dove- 
dale— Peaiiciiief  Al)t)ey— 8tafii)rd  Castle— Trentham  Hall 
— Taniworth — Tntlmry  Castle— Chart  ley  Castle— Alton 
Towers  —  Shrewshury  (  astle  —  Pridgenorth  —  Wenlock 
AhlK-y — Ludlow  CiLstlc — The  Feathers  Inn — Lichfield 
Cathedral — Dr.  Samuel  Johnson— Coventry — Lady  (iodiva 
and  Peeping  Tom  — Helvoir  Castle— Chamwoml  Forest 
— Ciroby  and  Pradgate — Elizabeth  Widvile  and  Lady 
Jane  Cirey — Ulverscroft  Priory — (Irace  l)ieu  AbWy  — 
Asliby  de  la  Zouche — Linfflev  Priory — Leicester  Abln'y 
and  Ciustle- Posworth  Field — F.dgehill — Naxeby  —  The 
Land  of  Shakespeare  —  Stratford-on-.\von  —  Warwick — 
Kenil worth — Pirmingham — Poulton  and  Watt — Fotlier- 
inghay  Castle— Holmby  House — I^dford  Castle — John 
Pimvan — Wobnrn  .\bl>ey  and  the  Knssells — .Stowe — 
Whaddon  Hall — Great  Hampden — Creslow  House     ...     75 


IV. 


THE  RIVER  THAMES  AND  LONDON. 

The  Thames  Head — Cotswold  Hills — Seven  Springs — Cirences- 
ter— Cheltenham — Sudeley  Castle — Chavennge— Shif]()rd 
— Lochhule  —  Stanton  Ilarcourt  —  Cumnor  Hall  —  Fair 
Rosamontl- Oinlstow  Nunnery — Oxford — Oxford  Colleges 
— Christ  Church — Corpus  Chrisli — Merton — Oriel — .\11 
Souls  —  I'niversity —  Queen's  —  Magdalen  —  Prasenose  — 
New  Colleue  — Hadclifle  Liiirary — Pixlleian  Library  —  Lin- 
coln—Exeter— Wadham  —  Kcble  —  Trinitv — Palliol— St 


CONTENTS.  ix 

PAGE 

John' s —Pembroke — Oxford  Churches — Oxford  Castle — 
Carfax  Conduit — Banbury — Broughtoii  Castle — Woodstock 
— Marlborough  —  Blenheim— Minster  Lovel — Bicester — 
Eynsham — Abingdon — Kadley — Bacon,  Kich,  and  Holt — 
Clifton  Hampden — Caversham— Reading — Maidenhead — 
Bisham  Abbey — Vicar  of  Bray — Eton  College — Windsor 
Castle — Magna  Charta  Island — Cowey  Stakes— Ditton — 
Twickenliara — London — Fire  Monument — St.  Paul's  Ca- 
thedral— Westminster  Abbey — The  Tower — Lollards  and 
Lambetli — Bow  Church — St.  Bride's — Whiteliall — Horse 
Guards — St.  James  Palace — Buckingliam  Palace — Kensing- 
ton Palace — Houses  of  Parliament — Hyde  Park — ^larble 
Arch — Albert  Memorial — South  Kensington  Museum — 
Royal  Exchange — Bank  of  England — Mansion  House — 
Inns  of  Court — British  Museum — Some  London  Scenes — 
The  Underground  Railway — Holland  House — Greenwich 
—Tilbury  Fort— The  Thames  Mouth 173 


V. 

LONDON  TO  CAMBRIDGE  AND  NORWICH. 

Harrow — St.  Albans— Verulam — Hatfield  House — Lord  Bur- 
leigh— Cassiobnry — Knebwortli — Great  Bed  of  Ware — 
The  river  Cam — Audley  End — Saffron  Walden — Newport 
— Nell  Gwynn  —  Littlebury  —  Winstanley  —  Harwich  — 
Cambridge — Trinity  and  St.  John's  Colleges — Caius  Col- 
lege— Trinity  Hall — The  Senate  House -University  Li- 
brary— Clare  College — Great  St.  Mary's  Church — King's 
College — Corpus  Christi  College— St.  Catharine's  College- 
Queen's  College — The  Pitt  Press — Pembroke  College — 
Peterhonse — Fitzwilliam  Museum — Hobson's  Conduit — 
Downing  College — Emmanuel  College — Christ's  College — 
Sidney-Sussex  College — The  Round  Church — Magdalene 
College — Jesus  College — Trum])ington — The  Fenland — 
Bury  St.  Edmunds— Hengrave  Hall — Ely — Peterborough 
— Crowland  Abbey — Guthlac — Norwich  Castle  and  Ca- 
thedral      289 


X  CONTENTS. 

VI. 
LONDON  TO  SHEFFIELD  AND  YORK. 

PAOB 

Tlio  Flying  St-oUsman — Grantham — The  Anpel  Inn— Wools- 
thorjHJ— Sir  Isa;ic  Newton — Stjimford — Hurgliley  House — 
I^ird  C'ctil— Tlie  George  Inn — Lincoln — Hrayforii  I'<x>l  — 
The  Fosse  Dyke  Canal — Lincoln  Cathedral — Ermine  Street 
— SL  Botolph's  Town — Boston — Scroohy — Aiisterfield — 
Nottingham — Ilrt^iery-knitting — Southwell — The  Minster 
— The  Saracen's  He:ui — Sherwood  Forest — Robin  Hood  — 
The  Dukerics — Thoresby  Hall— Ruflbrd  AblK»y — Clumber 
Park — Ollerton — WorLsop— Wei  beck  Abbey  ;  its  Subter- 
ranean Apartments  —  Newstead  Abbey  —  Newark — The 
TaU)ot  Arms — The  Clinton  Arms — Kingston-upon-IIull — 
The  Humber — Trinity  House — William  Wilberforce — 
Beverley — I>ecnnficld  Castle— Sheffield— The  Cutlers'  Com- 
pany— Wakefield — The  Wars  of  the  Roses — The  Six 
Chimblies — I.cihIs — WtK)llen  Cloth— St.  John's  Church — 
Teasels — Kirkstall  Abliey — Rumbald's  M<M)r — Ilkley — 
I^>lton  Abl)ey — The  Strid — Baidon  Tower — The  B<iv  of 
f'gremont — Rijxin  Minster — Fountains  Abl)oy — Studley 
Royal — Anne  Boleyn's  Seat — Fountains  Hall — Richmond 
Ciustle — Easby  Abbey — Darlington — Stockton-on-Tees — 
York  —  El)oracum  —  Towton  p'ield  —  Marston  Moor  — 
Micklegate  Bar— The  Red  Tower — York  Minster — Hot- 
spijr's  Tomb — York  Castle — Clifford's  Tower — RobinsoD 
Crusoe's  Birthplace 343 


LIST  OF   ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Photogravures  made  by  Gilbo  &  Co. 


PAGE 

The  Peacock  Inn,  Rowsley Frontispiece. 

St.  George's  Hall,  LiVERPOoii 8 

Remains  of  a  Roman  Bath,  Chester 12 

Hawarden  Castle ;  ,  jg 

Conway  Castle 32 

FuRNESS  Abbey 54 

Hartley  Coleridge's  Cottage,  Grasmere 66 

Hardwicke  Hall 80 

Staie  Bedroom,  Haddon  Hall 90 

Chatsworth 94 

Lion's  Face  Rock,  Dovedale 98 

Remains    of    the    Old    Roman  City    of    Uriconium, 

Shrewsbury 108 

Shakespeare's  House,  Stratford  on-Avon 142 

Anne  Hathaway's  Cottage,  Shottery 144 


xu  LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

FACE 

Warwick  Castle,  from  the  Avon 148 

Kenilwortii  Castle 150 

The  Bells  of  Ouseley  on  the  Thames 176 

Front  Quadrangle,  Oriel  College,  Oxford 188 

Magdalen  College  Cloister  and  Tower,  Oxford  .   .  194 

Windsor  Castle,  East  Front 230 

The  House  of  Lords 264 

Winter  Drawing-Room,  Hatfield  House 300 

Bridge  of  Sighs,  St.  John's  College,  Cambridcje    .   .  316 

Lincoln  Cathedral 350 

The  Major  Oak,  Sherwood  Forest 3G0 

Bolton  Abbey 380 

Bolton  Woods 384 

Fountains  Abbey,  Nave,  Looking  West 388 


LIVERPOOL  WESTWARD  TO  THE 
WELSH   COAST. 


ENGLAND, 
PICTURESQUE   AND    DESCRIPTIVE. 


I. 

LIVERPOOL  WESTWARD  TO  THE  WELSH  COAST. 

Liverpool — Birkenliead — Knowsley  Hall — Chester  —  Cheshire  — 
Eaton  Hall — Ilawarden  Castle — Bidston — Congleton— Beeston 
Castle — The  river  Dee — Llangollen — Valle-Crncis  Abbey — 
Dinas  Bran — Wynnstay — Pont  Cysylltau — Chirk  Castle — Ban- 
gor-ys-Coed — Ilolt — Wrexham — The  Sands  o'  Dee — North 
Wales— Flint  Castle— Iliiuddlan  Castle— Mold— Denbigli— St. 
Asaph — Holywell— Powys  Castle — The  Menai  Strait — Angle- 
sea  —  Beaumaris  Castle  ^  Bangor  —  Penrhyn  Citstle  —  Plas 
Kewydd — Caernarvon  Castle — Ancient  Segontium — Conway 
Castle — Bettws-y-Coed — Mount  Snowdon — Port  Madoc — Coast 
of  Merioneth — Barmouth — St.  Patricks  Causeway — Mawddach 
Yale — Cader  Idris — Dolgelly — Bala  Lake — Aberysthwith — 
Harlech  Castle — Holyhead. 

LIVERrOOL. 

The  American  transatlantic  tourist,  after  a  week 
or  more  spent  upon  the  ocean,  is  usually  glad  again 
to  see  the  land.  After  skirting  the  bold  Irish 
coast,  and  peeping  into  the  pretty  cove  of  Cork, 
•with  Queenstown  in  the  background,  and  passing 
the  rocky  headlands  of  AVales,  the  steamer  that 
brings  him  from  America  carefully  enters  the  Mer- 
sey River.     The  shores  are  low  but  picturesque  as 


4       ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

the  tourist  moves  along  tlie  estuary  between  the 
coasts  o.f  Lancashire  and  ('hesliire,  and  passes  the 
'f^rtyiit  beacon  standing  solitary  and  alone  amid  the 
waste  of  waters,  the  Perch  Kock  Light  off  New 
Brighton  on  the  Cheshire  side.  Thus  he  comes  to 
the  world's  greatest  seaport — Liverpool — and  the 
steamer  finally  passes  between  the  miles  of  docks 
that  front  the  two  cities,  Liverpool  on  the  left  and 
Birkenhead  on  the  right.  P^orests  of  masts  and 
funnels  loom  up  behind  the  great  dock-walls,  stretch- 
ing far  away  on  either  bank,  while  a  fleet  of  arriv- 
ing or  departing  steamers  is  anchored  in  a  long  line 
in  mid-chaimel.  Odd-looking,  low,  black  tugs,  pour- 
ing out  thick  smoke  from  double  funnels,  move  over 
the  water.  The  passengers  are  landed  upon  the 
capacious  structure  a  half  mile  long,  built  on  pon- 
toons, so  it  can  rise  and  fall  with  the  tides,  and 
known  as  the  Prince's  Landing-Stage,  where  the 
customs  officers  perform  their  brief  formalities  and 
quickly  let  the  visitor  go  ashore  over  the  fine  float- 
ing bridge  into  the  city. 

At  Liverpool  most  American  travellers  begin  their 
view  of  England.  It  is  the  great  city  of  ships  and 
sailors  and  all  that  appertains  to  the  sea,  and  its 
800,000  population  are  mainly  employed  in  mer- 
cantile lite  and  the  myriad  trades  that  serve  the 
ship  or  deal  in  its  cargo,  for  fifteen  thousand  to 
twenty  thousand  of  the  largest  vessels  of  modern 
commerce  will  enter  the  Liverpool  docks  in  a  year, 


LIVERPOOL.  5 

and  its  merchants  own  8,260,000  tonnage.  Front- 
ing these  clocks  on  the  Liverpool  side  of  the  Mersey 
is  the  great  sea-wall,  over  live  miles  long,  behind 
which  are  enclosed  400  acres  of  water-surface  in  the 
various  docks,  that  are  bordered  by  sixteen  miles' 
length  of  quays.  On  the  Birkenhead  side  of  the 
river  there  are  ten  miles  of  quays  in  the  docks  that 
extend  for  over  two  miles  along  the  bank.  These 
docks,  which  are  made  necessary  to  accommodate 
the  enormous  commerce,  have  cost  over  850,000,000, 
and  are  the  crowning  glory  of  Liverpool.  They  are 
filled  with  the  ships  of  all  nations,  and  huge  store- 
houses line  the  quays,  containing  products  from  all 
parts  of  the  globe,  yet  chiefly  the  grain  and  cotton, 
provisions,  tobacco,  and  lumber  of  America.  Eail- 
ways  run  along  the  inner  border  of  the  docks  on  a 
street  between  them  and  the  town,  and  along  their 
tracks  horses  draw  the  freight  cars,  while  double- 
decked  passenger-cars  also  run  upon  them  with 
broad  wheels  fitting  the  rails,  yet  capable  of  being 
run  oif  whenever  the  driver  wishes  to  get  ahead  of 
the  slowly  moving  freight-cars.  Ordinary  wagons 
move  upon  Strand  street  alongside,  with  horses  of 
the  largest  size  drawing  them,  the  huge  growth  of 
the  Liverpool  horses  being  commensurate  with  the 
immense  trucks  and  vans  to  which  these  magnificent 
animals  are  harnessed. 

Liverpool  is  of  great  antiquity,  but  in  the  time  of 
William  the  Conqueror  it  was  only  a  fishing-village. 


6      ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Livorj)0()l  Ca.stlo,  lonpf  since  deinolislicd,  was  a  fort- 
ress ei^^lit  Imndretl  ytars  ago,  and  afterward  the 
rival  families  of  Molineux  and  Stanley  contended 
for  the  mastery  of  the  place.  It  was  a  town  of  slow 
growth,  however,  and  did  not  attain  full  civic  dignity 
till  the  time  of  Charles  I.  It  was  within  two  hundred 
years  that  it  became  a  seaport  of  any  note.  The 
first  dotk  was  opened  in  1009,  and  strangely  enough 
it  was  the  African  slave-trade  that  gave  the  Liver- 
j)ool  merchants  their  original  start.  The  port  sent 
out  its  lirst  slave-ship  in  1709,  and  in  1753  had 
eighty-eight  ships  engaged  in  the  slave-trade,  which 
carried  over  twenty-five  thousand  slaves  from  Africa 
to  the  New  World  that  year.  Slave-auctions  were 
frerpient  in  Liverpool,  and  one  of  the  streets  where 
these  sales  were  efiected  was  nicknamed  "Negro 
street."  The  agitation  for  the  abolition  of  the  trade 
was  carried  on  a  long  time  before  Liverpool  sub- 
n)itted,  and  then  privateering  came  prominently  out 
as  the  lucrative  business  a  hundred  years  ago  during 
the  French  wars,  that  brought  Liverpool  great 
wealth.  Next  followed  the  development  of  trade 
with  the  Last  Indies,  and  finally  the  trade  with 
7\merica  has  grown  to  such  enormous  proportions 
in  the  present  centuiy  as  to  eclipse  all  other  special 
branehes  of  Liverj)0(>l  eounnerce,  large  as  some  of 
them  are.  This  has  ma<le  many  princely  fortunes 
for  the  merchants  and  shipowners,  and  their  wealth 
has  been  liberally  expended  in  beautifying  their  city. 


LIVERPOOL.  7 

It  has  in  recent  years  had  very  rapid  growth,  and 
has  greatly  increased  its  architectural  adornments. 
Most  amazing  has  been  this  advancement  since  the 
time  in  the  last  century  -when  the  mayor  and  cor- 
poration entertained  Prince  William  of  Gloucester 
at  dinner,  and,  pleased  at  the  appetite  he  developed, 
one  of  them  called  out,  "  Eat  away,  Your  Royal 
Highness ;  there's  plenty  more  in  the  kitchen !" 
The  mayor  was  Jonas  Bold,  and  afterwards,  taking 
the  prince  to  church,  they  Avere  astonished  to  find 
that  the  preacher  had  taken  for  his  text  the  words, 
"  Behold,  a  greater  than  Jonas  is  here." 

Liverpool  has  several  fine  buildings.  Its  Custom 
House  is  a  large  Ionic  structure  of  chaste  design, 
with  a  tall  dome  that  can  be  seen  from  afar,  and 
is  richly  decorated  within.  The  Town  Hall  and  the 
Exchange  buildings  make  up  the  four  sides  of  an 
enclosed  quadrangle  paved  with  broad  flagstones. 
Here,  around  the  attractive  Nelson  monument  in  the 
centre,  the  merchants  meet  and  transact  their  busi- 
ness. The  chief  public  building  is  St.  George's 
Hall,  an  imposing  edifice,  surrounded  with  columns 
and  raised  high  above  one  side  of  an  open  square, 
and  costing  $2,000,000  to  build.  It  is  a  Corinthian 
building,  having  at  one  end  the  Great  Hall,  one 
hundred  and  sixty-nine  feet  long,  where  public 
meetings  are  held,  and  court-rooms  at  the  other  end. 
Statues  of  Robert  Peel,  Gladstone,  and  Stephenson, 
with  other  great   men,  adorn  the  Hall.     Gladstone 


8      ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE   AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

was  the  son  of  Sir  John  Gladstone,  a  prominent 
Liverpool  merchant,  and  was  born  here  in  1809 ; 
Mrs.  Hemans  was  also  a  native  of  Liverpool,  born 
in  1793.  Sir  William  Brown,  who  amassed  a 
princely  fortune  in  Liverpool,  has  presented  the 
city  with  a  splendid  free  library  and  museum, 
which  stands  in  a  magnificent  position  on  Shaw's 
Brow.  Many  of  the  streets  are  lined  with  stately 
edifices,  public  and  private,  and  most  of  these 
avenues  diverge  from  the  square  fronting  St. 
George's  Hall,  opposite  which  is  the  fine  station 
of  the  London  and  North-western  Railway,  which, 
as  is  the  railroad  custom  in  England,  is  also  a 
large  hotel.  The  suburbs  of  Liverpool  are  filled 
for  a  wide  circuit  with  elegant  rural  homes  and 
surrounding  ornamental  grounds,  Avhere  the  opu- 
lent merchants  live.  They  are  generally  bordered 
with  high  stone  walls,  interfering  with  the  view, 
and  impressing  the  visitor  strongly  with  the  idea 
that  an  Englishman's  house  is  his  castle.  Several 
pretty  parks  with  ornamental  lakes  among  the  hills 
are  also  in  the  suburbs.  Yet  it  is  the  vast  trade 
that  is  the  glory  of  Liverpool,  for  it  is  but  an 
epitome  of  England's  commercial  greatness  and  is 
of  comparativrly  modern  growth.  "  All  this,"  not 
long  ago  said  Lord  Erskine,  speaking  of  the  rapid 
advanc<'inent  of  Liverj)ool,  "  has  been  created  by 
the  industry  and  well-disciplined  management  of  a 
handful  of  men  since  I  was  a  boy." 


S^t.  OcotQc^s  "fcall,  Xircipool. 


KNOWSLEY  HALL.  9 

KXOWSLEY   HALL. 

Five  miles  out  of  Liverpool  is  the  village  of 
Prescot,  where  KemLle  the  tragedian  was  born,  and 
where  the  people  at  the  present  time  are  largely 
engaged  in  watchmaking.  Not  far  from  Prescot  is 
one  of  the  famous  homes  of  England — Knowsley 
Hall,  the  seat  of  the  Stanleys  and  of  the  Earls  of 
Derby  for  five  hundred  years.  The  park  covers 
two  thousand  acres  and  is  almost  ten  miles  in  cir- 
cumference. The  greater  portion  of  the  famous 
house  was  built  in  the  time  of  George  II.  It  is  an 
extensive  and  magnificent  structure,  and  contains 
many  art-treasures  in  its  picture-gallery  by  Rem- 
brandt, Rubens,  Correggio,  Teniers,  Vandyke,  Sal- 
vator  Rosa,  and  others.  The  Stanleys  are  one  of 
the  governing  families  of  England,  the  last  Earl  of 
Derby  having  been  premier  in  18G6,  and  the  present 
earl  having  also  been  a  cabinet  minister.  The  crest 
of  the  Stanleys  represents  the  Eagle  and  the  Child, 
and  is  derived  from  the  story  of  a  remote  ancestor 
who,  cherishing  an  ardent  desire  for  a  male  heir, 
and  having  only  a  daughter,  contrived  to  have  an 
infant  conveyed  to  the  foot  of  a  tree  in  the  park 
frequented  by  an  Eagle.  Here  he  and  his  lady, 
taking  a  walk,  found  the  child  as  if  by  accident, 
and  the  lady,  considering  it  a  gift  from  Heaven 
brought  by  the  eagle  and  miraculously  preserved, 
adopted  the  boy  as  her  heir.     From  this  time  the 


10   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

crest  was  assuincJ ;  but  we  are  tokl  that  the  ohl 
knij^ht's  conscience  smote  him  at  the  trick,  and  on 
his  (leatljbed  lie  bequeathed  the  chief  part  of  his 
f«)rtune  to  the  daughter,  from  whom  are  descended 
the  present  family. 

THK    AXCIKXT    CITY    OF    CUKSTER. 

Not  far  from  Liverpool,  and  in  the  heart  of  Chesh- 
ire, we  come  to  tiie  small  but  famous  river  Dee  and 
the  old  and  very  interestini'  citv  of  Chester.  It  is 
built  in  the  form  of  a  quadrant,  its  four  walls  enclos- 
ing a  plot  about  a  half  mile  square.  The  walls, 
which  form  a  promenade  two  miles  around,  over 
which  every  visitor  should  tramp  ;  the  quaint  gates 
and  towers ;  the  "  Kows,"  or  arcades  along  the 
streets,  which  enable  the  sidewalks  to  pass  under 
tilt?  upper  stories  of  the  houses  by  cutting  away  the 
lirst-floor  front  rooms ;  and  the  many  ancient  build- 
ings— are  all  attractive.  The  Chester  Cathedral  is 
a  venerable  building  of  red  sandstone,  which  comes 
down  to  us  from  the  twelfth  century,  though  it  has 
recently  been  restored.  It  is  constructed  in  the  Per- 
j)endicular  style  of  architecture,  with  a  square  and 
turret-surmounted  central  tower.  This  is  the  Ca- 
tli('(b'al  of  St.  Werburgh,  and  besides  other  merits  of 
the  attractive  interior,  the  southern  transept  is  most 
striking  from  its  exceeding  length.  The  choir  is 
richly  ornaniented  with  carvings  and  fine  woodwork, 
the  Bishop's  Throne  having  originally  been  a  pedes- 


THE  ANCIENT  CITY  OF  CHESTER.  11 

tal  for  the  shrine  of  St.  Werburr^li.  The  cathedral 
contains  several  ancient  tombs  of  much  interest,  and 
the  elaborate  Chapter  Room,  ^ith  its  Early  English 
"windows  and  pillars,  is  much  admired.  In  this 
gorgeous  structure  the  "word  of  God  is  preached 
from  a  Bible  "whose  magnificently-bound  cover  is  in- 
laid "with  precious  stones  and  its  markers  adorned 
with  pearls.  The  book  is  the  Duke  of  Westminster's 
gift,  that  nobleman  being  the  landlord  of  much  of 
Chester.  In  the  nave  of  the  cathedral  are  t"W"0 
English  battle-flags  that  were  at  Bunker  Hill.  Ches- 
ter Castle,  now  used  as  a  barrack  for  troops,  has  only 
one  part  of  the  ancient  edifice  left,  called  Julius 
Cajsar's  Tower,  near  which  the  Dee  is  spanned  by  a 
fine  single-arch  bridge. 

The  quaintest  part  of  this  curious  old  city  of 
Chester  is  no  doubt  the  '^  Rows,"  above  referred  to. 
These  arcades,  which  certainly  form  a  capital  shelter 
from  the  hot  sun  or  rain,  were,  according  to  one 
authority,  originally  built  as  a  refuge  for  the  people 
in  case  of  sudden  attack  by  the  Welsh  ;  but  accord- 
ing to  others  they  originated  with  the  Romans,  and 
were  used  as  the  vestibules  of  the  houses ;  and  this 
seems  to  be  the  more  popular  theory  with  the  towns- 
folk. Under  the  "  Rows  "  are  shops  of  all  sizes,  and 
some  of  the  buildings  are  grotesqiiely  attractive,  es- 
pecially the  curious  one  bearing  the  motto  of  safety 
from  the  plague,  "  God's  providence  is  mine  inheri- 
tance," standing  on  Watergate  street,  and  known  as 


12  ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

"  God's  Providence  House  ;"  and  "  Bishop  Lloyd's 
Palace,"  which  is  ornamented  with  quaint  wood-carv- 
ings. The  "  Dark  Kow "  is  the  only  one  of  these 
strange  arcades  that  is  closed  from  the  light,  for 
it  forms  a  kind  of  tunnel  through  which  the  foot- 
walk  goes.  Not  far  from  this  is  the  famous  old 
*'  Stanley  House,"  where  one  unfortunate  Earl  of 
Derby  spent  the  last  day'before  his  execution  in  1657 
at  Bolton.  The  carvings  on  the  front  of  this  houso 
are  very  fine,  and  there  is  told  in  reference  to  the 
mournful  event  that  marks  its  history  the  following 
story :  Lieutenant  Smith  came  from  the  governor  of 
Chester  to  notify  the  condcnmed  earl  to  be  ready  for 
the  journey  to  Bolton.  The  earl  asked,  "  When 
would  have  me  go  ?  "  *'  To-morrow,  about  six  in  the 
morning,"  said  Smith.  "  Well,"  replied  the  earl, 
"commend  me  to  the  governor,  and  tell  him  I  shall 
be  ready  by  that  time."  Then  said  Smith,  "  Doth 
your  lordship  know  any  friend  or  servant  that  would 
do  the  thing  your  lordship  knows  of?  It  would 
do  well  if  you  had  a  friend."  The  earl  re})lied, 
"  What  do  you  mean  ?  to  cut  off  my  head  f"  Smith 
said,  "  Yes,  my  lord,  if  you  could  have  a  friend." 
Tiic  earl  answered,  "  Nay,  sir,  if  those  men  that 
would  have  my  head  will  not  find  one  to  cut  it  off, 
let  it  stand  where  it  is." 

It  is  easy  in  this  strange  old  city  to  carry  back 
the  imagination  for  centuries,  for  it  preserves  its  con- 
nection with  the  past  better  perhaps  than  any  other 


Ixcmains  ot  a  "Koman  Batb,  (Ibester. 


THE  ANCIENT  CITY  OF  CHESTER.  13 

English  town.  The  city  holds  the  keys  of  the  out- 
let of  the  Dee,  which  winds  round  it  on  two  sides, 
and  is  practically  one  of  the  gates  into  Wales.  Natu- 
rally, the  Romans  established  a  fortress  here  more 
than  a  thousand  years  ago,  and  made  it  the  head- 
quarters of  their  twentieth  legion,  who  impressed 
upon  the  town  the  formation  of  a  Roman  camp,  which 
it  bears  to  this  day.  The  very  name  of  Chester  is 
derived  from  the  Latin  word  for  a  camp.  Many 
Roman  fragments  still  remain,  the  most  notable  being 
the  Hyptocaust.  This  was  found  in  Watergate 
street  about  a  century  ago,  together  with  a  tessellated 
pavement.  There  have  also  been  exhumed  Roman 
altars,  tombs,  mosaics,  potteiy,  and  other  similar 
relics.  The  city  is  built  upon  a  sandstone  rock,  and 
this  furnishes  much  of  the  building-material,  so  that 
most  of  the  edifices  have  their  exteriors  disintegrated 
by  the  elements,  particularly  the  churches — a  peculi- 
arity that  may  have  probably  partly  justified  Dean 
Swift's  epigram,  written  when  his  bile  was  stirred 
because  a  rainstorm  had  prevented  some  of  the  Ches- 
ter clergy  from  dining  with  him  : 

"  Churches  and  clergy  of  this  city 
Are  very  much  akin  : 
They're  weather-beaten  all  without, 
And  empty  all  within." 

The  modernized  suburbs  of  Chester,  filled  with 
busy  factories,  are  extending  beyond  the  walls  over 


H   ENXiLAND,  PKTURICSQUE  AND  D1-:^SCRIPTIVE. 

a  larger  surface  than  the  ancient  town  itself.  At 
the  angles  of  the  old  walls  stand  the  famous  towers 
— the  Phanix  Tower,  Bonwaldesthorne's  Tower, 
Morgan's  Mount,  the  (Joblin  Tower,  and  the  Water 
Tower;  while  the  gates  in  the  walls  are  almost 
equally  famous — the  Eastgate,  Northgate,  Water- 
gate, liridgegate,  Kewgate,  and  Peppergate.  The 
ancient  Abbey  of  8t.  ]\Iary  had  its  site  near  the 
castle,  and  not  far  away  are  the  picturesque  ruins  of 
8t.  John's  Chapel,  outside  the  walls.  According  to 
a  local  legend,  its  neighborhood  had  the  honor  of 
sheltering  an  illustrious  fugitive.  Harold,  the  Saxon 
king,  we  are  told,  did  not  fall  at  Hastings,  but,  es- 
caping, spent  the  remainder  of  his  life  as  a  hermit, 
dwelling  in  a  cell  near  this  chapel  and.on  a  cliff 
alongside  the  Dee.  The  four  streets  leading  from 
the  gates  at  the  middle  of  each  side  of  the  town 
come  together  in  the  centre  at  a  place  formerly 
known  as  the  *'  Pentise,"  where  was  located  the  bull- 
ring at  whicli  was  anciently  carried  on  the  refining 
sport  of  "bull-baiting"  while  the  mayor  and  corpo- 
ration, clad  in  their  gowns  of  office,  looked  on  ap- 
provingly. Prior  to  this  sport  beginning,  we  are 
told  that  solemn  proclamation  was  made  for  "  the 
safety  of  the  king  and  the  mayor  of  Chester" — 
that  "  if  any  man  stands  within  twenty  yards  of 
the  bull-ring,  let  him  take  what  comes."  Here 
stood  also  the  stocks  and  pillory.  Amid  so  much 
that     is    ancient    and    quaint,    the    Town    Hall,    a 


CHESHIRE.  15 

beautiful  structure  recently  erected,  is  naturally 
most  attractive,  its  dedication  to  civic  uses  having 
been  made  by  the  present  Prince  of  Wales,  who 
bears  among  many  titles  that  of  Earl  of  Chester. 
But  this  is  about  the  only  modern  attraction  this  in- 
teresting city  possesses.  At  an  angle  of  the  walls 
are  the  "  Dee  Mills,"  as  old  as  the  Norman  Conquest, 
and  famous  in  song  as  the  place  where  the  "jolly 
miller  once  lived  on  the  Dee."  Full  of  attractions 
within  and  without,  it  is  difficult  to  tear  one's  self 
away  from  this  quaint  city,  and  therefore  we  Avill 
agree,  at  least  in  one  sense,  with  Dr.  Johnson's  blunt 
remark  to  a  lady  friend:  "I  have  come  to  Chester, 
madam,  I  cannot  tell  hoAV,  and  far  less  can  I  tell  how 
to  get  away  from  it." 

CHESHIRE. 

The  county  of  Cheshire  has  other  attractions. 
But  a  short  distance  from  Chester,  in  the  valley  of 
the  Dee,  is  Eaton  Hall,  the  elaborate  palace  of  the 
Duke  of  Westminster  and  one  of  the  finest  seats 
in  England,  situated  in  a  park  of  eight  hundred 
acres  that  extends  to  the  Avails  of  Chester.  This 
palace  has  been  almost  entirely  rebuilt  and  mod- 
eniized,  and  is  now  the  most  spacious  and  splendid 
example  of  Revived  Gothic  architecture  in  England. 
The  house  contains  many  w'orks  of  art — statues  by 
Gibson,  paintings  by  Rubens  and  others — and  is  full 
of  the    most    costly    and    beautiful  decorations  and 


16   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

furniture,  being  essentially  one  of  the  show-houses 
of  Britain.  In  the  extensive  gardens  are  a  Ivonian 
altar  found  in  Chester  and  a  Greek  altar  brought 
from  Delphi.  At  Hawarden  Castle  (pronounced 
Harden),  six  miles  west  of  Chester,  was  the  home 
of  the  late  William  E.  Gladstone,  and  in  its  pict- 
uresque park  are  the  ruins  of  the  ancient  castle, 
dating  from  the  time  of  the  Tudors,  and  from  the 
keep  of  which  there  is  a  fine  view  of  the  Valley 
of  tlic  Dee.  The  ruins  of  Ewloe  Castle,  six  hun- 
dred years  old,  are  not  far  away,  but  so  buried  in 
foliage  that  tlicy  arc  difficult  to  find.  Two  miles 
from  Chester  is  Iloole  House,  formerly  Lady 
Broughton's,  famous  for  its  rockwork,  a  lawn  of  less 
than  an  acre  exfpiisitcly  j)lanted  with  clipped  yews 
and  other  trees  being  surrounded  by  a  rockery  over 
forty  feet  high.  In  the  Wirral  or  Western  Cheshire 
are  several  attractive  villages.  At  Bidston,  west  of 
Birkenhead  and  on  the  sea-coast,  is  the  ancient  house 
that  was  once  the  home  of  the  unfortunate  Earl  of 
Derby,  whose  execution  is  mentioned  above.  Con- 
gleton,  in  Eastern  Cheshire,  stands  on  the  Dane,  in 
a  lovely  country,  and  is  a  good  example  of  an  old 
English  country-town.  Its  Lion  Inn  is  a  fine  speci- 
men of  the  ancient  black-and-white  gabled  hostelrie 
which  novelists  love  so  well  to  describe.  At  Nant- 
wich  is  a  curious  old  house  with  a  heavy  octagonal 
bow-window  in  the  upper  story  overhanging  a 
smaller   lower   one,    telescope-fashion.       The    noble 


UawarDeu  Castle, 


CHESHIRE.  17 

tower   of    Nantwich    cliiirch    rises    above,    and    the 
building  is  in  excellent  preservation. 

Nearly  in  the  centre  of  Cheshire  is  the  stately 
fortress  of  Beeston  Castle,  standing  on  a  sandstone 
rock  rising  some  three  hundred  and  sixty  feet  from 
the  flat  country.  It  Avas  built  nearly  seven  hundred 
years  ago  by  an  Earl  of  Cheshire,  then  just  returned 
from  the  Crusades.  Standing  in  an  irregular  court 
covering  about  five  acres,  its  thick  walls  and  deep 
ditch  made  it  a  place  of  much  strength.  It  Avas 
ruined  prior  to  the  time  of  Henry  VIII.,  having 
been  long  contended  for  and  finally  dismantled  in  the 
Wars  of  the  Roses.  Being  then  rebuilt,  it  became 
a  famous  fortress  in  the  Civil  Wars,  having  been 
seized  by  the  Roundheads,  then  surprised  and  taken 
by  the  Royalists,  alternately  besieged  and  defended 
afterward,  and  finally  starved  into  surrender  by  the 
Parliamentary  troops  in  1645.  This  was  King 
Charles's  final  struggle,  though  the  castle  did  not 
succumb  till  after  eighteen  Aveeks'  siege,  and  its  de- 
fenders AA^ere  forced  to  eat  cats  and  rats  to  satisfy 
hunger,  and  Avere  reduced  to  only  sixty.  Beeston 
Castle  Avas  then  finally  dismantled,  and  its  ruins  are 
noAA'  an  attraction  to  the  tourist.  Lea  Hall,  an  an- 
cient and  famous  timbered  mansion,  surrounded  by 
a  moat,  Avas  situated  about  six  miles  from  Chester, 
but  the  moat  alone  remains  to  shoAV  Avhere  it  stood. 
Here  lived  Sir  Hugh  Calveley,  one  of  Froissart's 
heroes,  who  Avas  governor  of  Calais  Avhen  it  was 
Vol.  I.— 2 


18   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

luld  by  the  Knglisli,  and  is  buried  under  a  suin})tu- 
ous  tomb  in  the  church  of  tiie  neighboring  college 
of  liunbury,  which  he  founded.  His  armed  effigy 
surmounts  the  tomb,  and  the  inscription  says  he  died 
on  St.  George's  Day,  1394. 

THE    RIVER   DEE. 

Frequent  reference  has  been  made  to  the  river 
Dee,  the  Deva  of  the  Welsh,  which  is  unquestion- 
ably one  of  the  finest  streams  of  Britain.  It  rises 
in  the  Arran  Fowddwy,  one  of  the  chief  Welsh 
mountains,  nearly  three  thousand  feet  high,  and  after 
a  winding  course  of  about  seventy  miles  falls  into 
the  Irish  Sea.  This  renowned  stream  has  been  the 
theme  of  many  a  poot,  and  after  expanding  near  its 
source  into  the  beautiful  Bala  Lake,  whoso  bewitch- 
ing surroundings  are  nearly  all  described  in  poly- 
syllabic and  unpronounceable  Welsh  names,  and  are 
j)opular  among  artists  and  anglers,  it  flows  through 
Edeirnim  Vale,  past  Corwen.  Here  a  pathway  as- 
cends to  the  eminence  known  as  Glendower's  Seat,  ■ 
with  which  tradition  has  closely  knit  the  name  of  the 
\\'elsh  hero,  the  close  of  whose  marvellous  career 
marked  the  termination  of  Welsh  independence. 
Then  the  romantic  Dee  enters  the  far-famed  Valley 
of  Llangollen,  where  tourists  love  to  roam,  and 
where  lived  the  "  Ladies  of  Llangollen."  AVe  ar<^  told 
that  these  two  high-bcu'n  dames  had  many  lovers, 
but  rejecting  all  and  enamored  only  of  each  other, 


THE  RIVER  DEE.  19 

Lady  Eleanor  Butler  and  ]\[iss  Sarah  Ponsonby,  the 
latter  seventeen  years  the  junior  of  the  former, 
determined  on  a  life  of  celibacy.  They  eloped 
together  from  Ireland,  were  overtaken  and  brought 
back,  and  then  a  second  time  decamped — on  this 
occasion  in  masquerade,  the  elder  dressed  as  a 
peasant  and  the  younger  as  a  smart  groom  in  top- 
boots.  Escaping  pursuit,  they  settled  in  Llangollen 
in  1778  at  the  quaint  little  house  called  Plas 
Kewydd  (New  Place),  and  lived  there  together  for  a 
half  century.  Their  costume  was  extraordinary,  for 
they  appeared  in  public  in  blue  riding-habits,  men's 
neckcloths,  and  high  hats,  with  their  hair  cropped 
short.  They  had  antiquarian  tastes,  which  led  to  the 
accumulation  of  a  vast  lot  of  old  wood-carvings  and 
stained  glass,  gathered  from  all  parts  of  the  world 
and  worked  into  the  fittings  and  adornment  of  their 
home.  They  were  on  excellent  terms  with  all  the 
neighbors,  and  Lady  Butler  the  elder  died  in  1829, 
aged  ninety,  and  ]\Iiss  Ponsonby  two  years  after- 
ward, aged  seventy-six.  Their  remains  lie  in 
Llangollen  churchyard,  where  is  also  interred  their 
faithful  servant,  Mary  Carryl,  who  bought  for  them, 
Avith  her  savings,  the  freehold  of  Plas  Newydd.  A 
monument  has  been  erected  in  memory  of  the  three. 
Within  this  famous  valley  are  the  ruins  of  Valle- 
Crucis  Abbey,  the  most  picturesque  abbey  ruin  in 
North  Wales.  An  adjacent  stone  cross  gave  it  the 
name  six  hundred  years  ago,  when  it  was  built  by 


20  ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

the  groat  ^Sfadoc  for  the  Cistercian  monks.  The 
ruins  in  some  parts  are  now  availed  of  for  farm- 
houses. Fine  ash  trees  bend  over  the  ruined 
arches,  ivy  climbs  the  clustered  columns,  and  the 
lancet  windows  with  their  delicate  tracery  are  much 
admired.  The  remains  consist  of  the  church, 
abbot's  lodgings,  refectory,  and  dormitory.  The 
church  was  cruciform,  and  is  now  nearly  roofless, 
though  the  east  and  west  ends  and  the  southern 
transept  are  tolerably  pei-fect,  so  that  much  of  the 
abbey  remains.  It  was  occupied  by  the  Cistercians, 
and  was  dedicated  to  the  Virgin  Mary.  The 
ancient  cross,  of  which  the  remains  are  still  stand- 
ing near  by,  is  Elisog's  Pillar,  erected  in  the  seventh 
century  as  a  memorial  of  that  Welsh  prince.  It 
was  one  of  the  earliest  lettered  stones  in  Britain, 
standing  originally  about  twelve  feet  high.  From 
this  cross  came  the  name  of  Valle  Crucis,  which  in 
the  thirteenth  century  was  given  to  the  famous 
abbey.  The  great  ]\Iadoc,  who  lived  in  the  neigh- 
boring castle  of  Dinas  Bran,  built  this  abbey  to 
atone  for  a  life  of  violence.  The  ruins  of  his  castle 
stand  on  a  hill  elevated  about  one  thousand  feet 
above  the  Dee.  Bran  in  Welsh  means  crow,  so 
that  the  English  know  it  as  Crow  Castle.  From  its 
ruins  there  is  a  beautiful  view  over  the  Valley  of 
Llangollen.  Farther  down  the  valley  is  tlie  man- 
sion of  Wynnstay,  the  seat  of  ISir  Watkin  Wynn, 
in  the  midst  of  a  large  and  richly  wooded  park,  a 


THE  RIVER  DER  21 

circle  of  eight  miles  enclosing  the  superb  domain, 
within  which  are  herds  of  fallow-deer  and  many 
noble  trees.  The  old  mansion  was  burnt  in  1858, 
and  an  imposing  structure  in  Renaissance  now 
occupies  the  site.  Fine  paintings  by  renowned 
artists  adorn  the  walls,  and  the  Dee  foams  over  its^ 
rocky  bed  in  a  sequestered  dell  near  the  mansion. 
Memorial  columns  and  tablets  in  the  park  mark 
notable  men  and  events  in  the  Wynn  family,  the 
chief  being  the  Waterloo  Tower,  ninety  feet  high. 
Far  away  down  the  valley  a  notable  aqueduct 
by  Telford  carries  the  Ellesmere  Canal  over  the 
Dee — ^the  Pont  Cysylltau — supported  on  eighteen 
piers  of  masonry  at  an  elevation  of  one  hundred 
and  tAventy-one  feet,  while  a  mile  below  is  the  still 
more  imposing  viaduct  carrying  the  Great  Western 
Railway  across. 

Not  far  distant  is  Chirk  Castle,  now  the  home  of 
Mr.  R.  Myddelton  Biddiilph,  a  combination  of  a 
feudal  fortress  and  a  modem  mansion.  The  ancient 
portion,  still  preserved,  was  built  by  Roger  Morti- 
mer, to  whom  Edward  I.  granted  the  lordship  of 
Chirk.  It  was  a  bone  of  contention  during  the 
Civil  Wars,  and  when  they  were  over,  $150,000 
were  spent  in  repairing  the  great  quadrangular  fort- 
ress. It  stands  in  a  noble  situation,  and  on  a  clear 
day  portions  of  seventeen  counties  can  be  seen  from 
the  summit.  Still  follo\Aring  down  the  picturesque 
river,  we  come  to  Bangor-ys-Coed,  or  "Bangor-in- 


22   ENCJLANP,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DEFCRIPTIVE. 

tlio-Wood,"  in  Flintsliirc,  once  the  seat  of  a  famous 
monastery  that  disappeared  twelve  hundred  years 
aj^o.  Here  a  pretty  brid<^e  crosses  tlie  river,  and  a 
modern  church  is  the  most  prominent  structure  in 
the  village.  The  old  monastery  is  said  to  have 
heen  the  home  of  twenty-four  hundred  monks,  one 
half  of  whom  were  slain  in  a  battle  near  Chester  by 
the  heathen  king  Ethelfrith,  who  afterwards  sacked 
the  monastery,  but  the  Welsh  soon  gathered  their 
forces  again  and  took  terrible  vengeance.  Many 
ancient  coffins  and  Roman  remains  have  been  found 
here.  The  Dec  now  runs  with  swift  current  past 
Overton  to  the  ancient  town  of  Holt,  whose  charter 
is  nearly  five  hundred  years  old,  but  whose  impor- 
tance is  now  much  less  than  of  yore.  Holt  belongs 
to  the  debatable  Powisland,  the  strip  of  territory  over 
Avhich  the  English  and  Welsh  fought  for  centuries. 
Holt  was  formerly  known  as  Lyons,  and  was  a 
Iioman  outpost  of  Chester.  Edward  I.  granted  it  to 
Earl  Warren,  who  built  Holt  Castle,  of  which  only 
a  few  quaint  pictures  now  exist,  though  it  was  a 
renowned  stronghold  in  its  day.  It  was  a  five- 
sided  structure  with  a  tower  on  each  corner,  enclos- 
ing an  ample  courtyard.  After  standing  several 
sieges  in  the  Civil  Wars  of  Cromwell's  time  the 
battered  castle  was  dismantled. 

The  famous  Wrexham  Church,  whose  tower  is 
regarded  as  one  of  the  "  seven  wonders  of  Wales," 
is  three  miles  from  Holt,  and  is  four  hundred  years 


THE  RIVER  DEE.  23 

old.  Few  churches  built  as  early  as  the  reign  of 
Henry  VIII.  can  compare  with  this.  It  is  dedicated 
to  St.  Giles,  and  statues  of  him  and  of  twenty-nine 
other  saints  embellish  niches  in  the  tower.  Along- 
side of  St.  Giles  is  the  hind  that  nourished  him  in 
the  desert.  The  bells  of  Wrexham  peal  melodiously 
ov^er  the  valley,  and  in  the  vicarage  the  good  Bishop 
Heber  wrote  the  favorite  hymn,  "From  Greenland's 
Icy  Mountains."  In  the  churchyard  is  the  tomb  of 
Elihu  Yale,  the  founder  of 'Yale  College,  who  died 
in  1721.     His  quaint  epitaph  begins : 

"  Born  in  America,  in  Europe  bred, 
In  Africa  travelled,  in  Asia  wed, 
Where  long  he  liv'd  and  thriv'd, 
In  London  dead. 

Much  good,  some  ill  he  did,  so  hope  all's  even 
And  that  his  soul  through  mercy's  gone  to  heaven." 

Then  the  Dee  flows  on  past  the  ducal  palace  of 
Eaton  Hall,  and  encircles  Chester,  which  has  its 
race-course,  "The  Roodee "  —  where  is  held  an 
annual  contest  in  May  for  the  "Chester  Cup" — 
enclosed  by  a  beautiful  semicircle  of  the  river. 
The  Dee  flows  on  through  a  straight  channel  for 
six  miles  to  its  estuary,  which  broadens  among 
treacherous  sands  and  flats  between  Flintshire  and 
Ciieshire,  till  it  falls  into  the  Irish  Sea.  Many  are 
the  tales  of  woe  that  are  told  of  the  "  Sands  o' 
Dee,"  along  which  the  railway  from  Chester  to 
Holyhead  skirts  the   edge  in  Flintshire.      Many  a 


24  ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

poor  gir!,  sent  for  tlie  cattle  wandering  on  these 
sands,  has  been  lost  in  the  mist  that  rises  from 
the  sea,  and  drowned  by  the  (juickly  rushing  waters. 
Kingsley  has  plaintively  told  the  story  in  his  mourn- 
ful poem : 

"  They  rowed  her  in  across  the  rolUng  foam — 
The  cruel,  crawling  foam, 
The  cruel,  hungry  foam — 
To  her  grave  beside  the  sea ; 
But  still  the  boatmen  hear  her  call  her  cattle  home 
Across  the  Sands  o'  Dee." 


FLINT    AND    DENBIGH. 

Let  US  now  journey  westward  from  the  Dec  into 
Wales,  coming  first  into  Flintshire.  The  town  of 
Flint,  it  is  conjectured,  was  originally  a  Roman  camp, 
from  the  design  and  antiquities  found  there.  Ed- 
ward I.,  six  hundred  years  ago,  built  Flint  Castle 
upon  an  isolated  rock  in  a  marsh  near  the  river,  and 
after  a  checquered  history  it  was  dismantled  in  the 
seventeenth  century.  From  the  railway  between 
Chester  and  Holyhead  the  ruins  of  this  castle  are 
visible  on  its  low  freestone  rock  ;  it  is  a  square,  with 
round  towers  at  three  of  the  corners  and  a  massive 
keep  at  the  other,  formed  like  a  double  tower  and 
detached  from  the  main  castle.  This  was  the  "  dol- 
orous castle  "  into  Avhich  Richard  II.  was  inveigled 
at  the  beginning  of  his  imprisonment,  which  ended 
with  abdication,   and    finally  his  death  at  Pomfret. 


FLINT  AND  DENBIGH.  25 

The  stoiy  is  told  that  Richard  had  a  fine  greyhound 
at  Flint  Castle  that  often  caressed  hiin,  but  when  the 
Duke  of  Lancaster  came  there  the  greyhound  sud- 
denly left  Richard  and  caressed  the  duke,  who,  not 
knowing  the  dog,  asked  Richard  what  it  meant. 
"  Cousin,"  replied  the  king,  ''  it  means  a  great  deal 
for  you  and  very  little  for  me.  I  understand  by  it 
that  this  greyhound  pays  his  court  to  you  as  King 
of  England,  which  3'ou  will  surely  be,  and  I  shall  be 
deposed,  for  the  natural  instinct  of  the  dog  shows  it 
to  him ;  keep  him,  therefore,  by  your  side."  Lan- 
caster treasured  this,  and  paid  attention  to  the  dog, 
which  would  nevermore  follow  Richard,  but  kept 
by  the  side  of  the  duke,  "as  was  witnessed," 
says  the  chronicler  Froissart,  "  by  thirty  thousand 
men." 

Rhuddlan  Castle,  also  in  Flintshire,  is  a  red  sand- 
stone ruin  of  striking  appearance,  standing  on  the 
Clwyd  River.  When  it  was  founded  no  one  knows 
accurately,  but  it  was  rebuilt  seven  hundred  years 
ago,  and  was  dismantled,  like  many  other  Welsh 
castles,  in  1646.  It  was  at  Rhuddlan  that  Edward 
I.  promised  the  Welsh  "  a  native  prince  who  never 
spoke  a  word  of  English,  and  whose  life  and  conver- 
sation no  man  could  impugn  ;"  and  this  promise  he 
fulfilled  to  the  letter  by  naming  as  the  first  English 
Prince  of  Wales  his  infant  son,  then  just  born  at 
Caernarvon  Castle.  Six  massive  towers  flank  the 
walls  of  this  famous  castle,  and  are  in  tolerably  fair 


2G   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

preservation.  Not  far  to  the  southward  is  the  emi- 
nence known  by  the  Welsh  as  **  Yr-Wyddgrug,"  or 
"  a  lofty  hill,"  and  which  the  English  call  Mold.  On 
this  hill  was  a  castle,  of  which  little  remains  now  but 
tracings  of  the  ditches,  larches  and  other  trees  peace- 
fully growing  on  the  site  of  the  ancient  stronghold. 
Oflf  toward  Wrexham  are  the  ruins  of  another  castle, 
known  as  Caergwrle,  or  the  "  camp  of  the  giant 
legion."  This  was  of  Welsh  origin,  and  conmianded 
the  entrance  to  the  Vale  of  Alen  j  the  English  called 
it  Hope  Castle. 

Adjoining  Elintshire  is  Denbigh,  with  the  quiet 
watering-place  of  Abergele  out  on  the  Irish  Sea. 
About  two  miles  away  is  St.  Asaph,  with  its  famous 
cathedral,  the  smallest  in  the  kingdom,  having 
portions  dating  from  the  thirteenth  century.  The 
great  castle  of  Denbigh,  when  in  its  full  glory, 
liad  fortifications  one  and  a  half  miles  in  circum- 
ference. It  stood  on  a  steep  hill  at  the  county- 
town,  where  scanty  ruins  now  remain,  consisting 
chiefly  of  an  immense  gateway  with  remains  of  flank- 
ing towers.  Above  the  entrance  is  a  statue  of  the 
Earl  of  Lincoln,  its  founder  in  the  thirteenth  cen- 
tury. His  only  son  was  drowned  in  the  castle-well, 
which  so  affected  the  father  that  he  did  not  finish  the 
castle.  Edward  II.  gave  Denbigh  to  I)esj)enser  ; 
Leicester  owned  it  in  Elizabeth's  time  ;  Charles  II. 
dismantled  it.  The  ruins  impress  the  visitor  with 
the  stupendous  strength  of  the  immense  walls  of  this 


FLINT  AND  DENBIGH.  27 

stronghold,  while  extensive  passages  and  dungeons 
beneath  the  surface  have  been  explored  for  long  dis- 
tances. In  one  chamber  near  the  entrance-tower, 
which  had  been  walled  up,  a  large  amount  of  gun- 
powder was  found.  Henry  M.  Stanley  is  a  native 
of  Denbigh.  At  Holywell,  now  the  second  toAvn 
in  Xorth  Wales,  is  the  shrine  to  which  pilgrims 
have  been  going  for  many  centuries.  At  the  foot 
of  a  steep  hill,  from  an  aperture  in  the  rock,  there 
rushes  forth  a  torrent  of  water  at  the  rate  of  eighty- 
four  hogsheads  a  minute  ;  whether  the  season  be  wet 
or  be  dry,  the  sacred  stream  gushing  forth  from  St. 
Winifrede's  Well  varies  but  little,  and  around  it 
grows  the  fragrant  moss  known  as  St.  Winifrede's 
Hair.  The  spring  has  valuable  medicinal  virtues, 
and  an  elegant  dome  covering  it  supports  a  chapel. 
The  little  building  is  an  exquisite  Gothic  structure 
built  by  Henry  VII.  A  second  basin  is  provided, 
into  which  bathers  may  descend.  The  pilgrims  to 
this  holy  well  have  of  late  years  decreased  in  num- 
bers ;  James  II.,  who,  we  are  told,  '^  lost  three  king- 
doms for  a  mass,"  visited  this  well  in  1686,  and 
"  received  as  a  reward  the  undergarment  worn  by  his 
great-grandmother,  ]\Iary  Queen  of  Scots,  on  the  day 
of  her  execution."  This  miraculous  spring  gets  its 
name  from  the  pious  virgin  Winifredc.  She  having 
been  seen  by  the  Prince  of  Wales,  Caradoc,  he  was 
struck  by  her  great  beauty  and  attempted  to  carry 
her  off  I  she  fled  to  the  church,  the  prince  pursuing. 


28   ENGLAND,  PICTIIRESQUK  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

and,  overtaking  licr,  ho  in  rage  drew  liis  sword  and 
struck  off  lier  head ;  the  severed  head  bounded 
through  the  church-door  and  rolled  to  the  foot  of  tho 
altar.  ( )n  the  spot  where  it  rested  a  spring  of  un- 
common size  burst  forth.  The  pious  priest  took  up 
the  head,  and  at  his  prayer  it  was  imited  to  the  body, 
and  the  virgin,  restored  to  life,  lived  in  sanctity  for 
fifteen  years  afterward ;  miracles  were  wrought  at 
her  tomb ;  the  spring  proved  another  Pool  of  Bo- 
thesda,  and  to  this  day  we  are  told  that  the  votive 
crutches  and  chairs  left  by  the  cured  remain  hanging 
over  St.  AVinifrede's  Well,  while  the  blood  of  the 
virgin  is  reproduced  in  tlio  red  vegetable  growth  on 
the  adjacent  stones. 

South  of  Denbigh,  in  Montgomeryshire,  are  the 
ruins  of  ^lontgomery  Castle,  long  a  frontier  fortress 
of  AVales,  around  which  many  hot  contests  have 
raged ;  a  fragment  of  a  tower  and  portions  of  the 
walls  are  all  that  remain.  Powys  Castle  is  at 
Welsh  Pool,  and  is  still  preserved — a  red  sand- 
stone structure  on  a  rocky  elevation  in  a  spacious 
and  well- wooded  park ;  Sir  Kobert  Smirkc  has  re- 
stored it. 

TiiK  mp:nai  strait. 

Still  journeying  westward,  we  come  to  Caemar- 
Aonshire,  and  reach  the  remarkable  estuary  divid- 
ing the  mainland  from  the  island  of  Anglesea,  and 
known  as  the  ]\Icnai  Strait.     This    narrow  stream, 


THE  MENAI  STRAIT.  29 

with  its  stecplj-sloping  banks  and  winding  shores, 
looks  more  like  a  I'iver  than  a  strait,  and  it  every- 
where discloses  evidence  of  the  residence  of  an 
almost  pre-historic  people  in  relics  of  nations  that 
inhabited  its  banks  before  the  invasion  of  the 
Romans.  There  are  hill-forts,  sepulchral  mounds, 
pillars  of  stone,  rude  pottery,  weapons  of  stone  and 
bronze ;  and  in  that  early  day  Mona  itself,  as  Angle- 
sea  was  called,  was  a  sacred  island.  Here  were 
fierce  struggles  between  Roman  and  Briton,  and 
Tacitus  tells  of  the  invasion  of  Mona  by  the  Romans 
and  the  desperate  conflicts  that  ensued  as  early  as 
A.  D.  60.  The  history  of  the  strait  is  a  story  of 
almost  unending  war  for  centuries,  and  renowned 
castles  bearing  the  scars  of  these  conflicts  keep 
watch  and  ward  to  this  day.  Beaumaris,  Bangor, 
Caernarvon,  and  Conway  castles  still  remain  in  par- 
tial ruin  to  remind  us  of  the  Welsh  wars  of  centuries 
ago.  On  the  Anglesea  shore,  at  the  northern  en- 
trance to  the  strait,  is  the  picturesque  ruin  of 
Beaumaris  Castle,  built  by  Edward  I.  at  a  point 
Avhere  vessels  could  conveniently  land.  It  stands 
on  the  lowlands,  and  a  canal  connects  its  ditch  with 
the  sea.  It  consists  of  a  hexagonal  line  of  outer  de- 
fences surrounding  an  inner  squai'e.  Round  towers 
flanked  the  outer  walls,  and  the  chapel  within  is 
quite  well  preserved.  It  has  not  had  much  place  in 
history,  and  the  neighboring  town  is  now  a  peaceful 
watering-place. 


30  ENGLAND,   PICTl'RP:SQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Across  the  strait  is  IJangor,  a  ratlier  straggling 
town,  with  a  cathedral  that  is  not  very  old.  We  arc 
told  that  its  bishop  once  sold  its  peal  of  bells,  and, 
going  down  to  the  shore  to  see  them  shipped  away, 
was  stricken  blind  as  a  punishment  for  the  sacrilege. 
Of  Bangor  Castle,  as  it  originally  stood,  but  insig- 
nificant traces  remain ;  but  Lord  Penrhyn  erected 
in  the  neighborhood  the  imposing  castle  of  Pen- 
rhyn, a  massive  pile  of  dark  limestone,  in  which 
the  endeavor  is  made  to  combine  a  Norman  feudal 
castle  with  a  modern  dwelling,  though  with  only  in- 
different success,  excepting  in  the  expenditure  in- 
volved. The  roads  from  the  great  suspansion-bridgc 
across  the  strait  lead  on  either  hand  to  Bangor  and 
Beaunjaris,  although  the  route  is  rather  circuitous. 
I'his  bridge,  crossing  at  the  narrowest  and  most 
beautiful  part  of  the  strait,  was  long  regarded  as  the 
greatest  triumph  of  bridge-engineering.  It  carried 
the  Holyhead  high-road  across  the  strait,  .and  was 
built  by  Telford.  The  bridge  is  five  hundred  and 
seventy-nine  feet  long,  and  stands  one  hundred  feet 
above  high-water  mark  ;  it  cost  $600,000.  Above 
the  bridge  the  strait  widens,  and  here,  amid  the  swift- 
flowing  currents,  the  famous  whitebait  are  caught  for 
the  London  epicures.  Three-quarters  of  a  mile  be- 
low, at  another  narrow  place,  the  railway  crosses 
the  strait  through  Stephenson's  Britannia  tubular 
bridge,  which  is  more  useful  than  ornamental,  the 
railway  passing  through   two  long  rectangular  iron 


CAERNARVON  AND  CONWAY.  31 

tubes,  supported  on  plain  massive  pillars.  From  a 
rock  in  the  strait  the  central  tower  rises  to  a  height 
of  two  hundred  and  thirty  feet,  and  other  towers  are 
built  on  each  shore  at  a  distance  of  four  hundred  and 
sixty  feet  from  the  central  one.  Couchant  lions 
carved  in  stone  guard  the  bridge-portals  at  each  end, 
and  this  famous  viaduct  cost  over  $2,500,000.  A 
short  distance  below  the  Anglesea  Column  towei's 
from  a  dark  rock  on  the  northern  shore  of  the  strait. 
It  was  erected  in  honor  of  the  first  Marquis  of  Angle- 
sea,  the  gallant  commander  of  the  British  light  cav- 
alry at  Waterloo,  where  his  leg  was  carried  away  by 
one  of  the  last  French  cannon-shots.  For  many 
years  after  the  great  victory  he  lived  here,  literally 
with  "  one  foot  in  the  grave."  Plas  Newydd,  one 
and  a  half  miles  below,  the  Anglesea  family  resi- 
dence, where  the  marquis  lived,  is  a  large  and  un- 
attractive mansion,  beautifully  situated  on  the  sloping 
shore.  It  has  in  the  park  two  ancient  sepulchral 
monuments  of  great  interest  to  the  antiquarian. 

CAERNARVON    AND     CONWAY. 

As  the  famous  strait  widens  below  the  bridges  the 
shores  are  tamer,  and  we  come  to  the  famous  Caer- 
narvon Castle,  the  scene  of  many  stirring  military 
events,  as  it  held  the  key  to  the  valleys  of  Snowdon, 
and  behind  it  towers  that  famous  peak,  the  highest 
mountain  in  Britain,  Avhose  summit  rises  to  a  height 
of  3590  feet.     This  great  castle  also  commanded  the 


32   EXGLANP,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

south-western  entrance  to  the  strait,  and  near  it  the 
rapid  little  Seiont  River  flows  into  the  sea.  The  an- 
cient Britons  had  a  fort  here,  and  afterwards  it  was 
a  Roman  fortified  camp,  which  gradually  developed 
into  the  city  of  Scgontium.  The  British  name,  from 
which  the  present  one  comes,  was  Caor-yn-Arvon — 
"  the  castle  opposite  to  Mona."  Segontium  had  the 
honor  of  being  the  birthplace  of  the  Emperor  Con- 
stantine,  and  many  Roman  remains  still  exist  there. 
It  was  in  1284,  however,  that  Edward  I.  began 
building  the  present  castle,  and  it  took  thirty-nine 
years  to  com[)letc.  The  castle  plan  is  an  irregular 
oval,  with  one  side  overlooking  the  strait.  At  the 
end  nearest  the  sea,  where  the  works  come  to  a  blunt 
point,  is  the  famous  Eagle  Tower,  which  has  eagles 
sculptured  on  the  battlements.  Here  Queen  P^leanor 
is  said  to  have  given  birth  to  the  first  Prince  of 
Wales,  afterward  Edward  II.  There  are  twelve 
towers  altogother,  and  these,  with  the  light-  and 
dark-hued  stone  in  the  walls,  give  the  castle  a  mas- 
sive yet  graceful  aspect  as  it  stands  on  the  low  ground 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Seiont.  The  castle  has  recently 
undergone  considerable  restoration.  A  corridor,  with 
loopholes  contrived  in  the  thickness  of  the  walls, 
runs  entirely  around  it,  and  from  this  archers  could 
fight  an  approaching  enemy.  This  great  fortress  has 
been  called  the  "  boast  of  North  Wales  "  from  its  size 
and  f'xcellent  position.  It  was  last  used  for  defence 
during  the  Civil  Wars,  having  been  a  military  strong- 


Conwav  Castle. 


CAERNARVOX  AND  CONWAY.  33 

hold  for  nearly  four  centuries.  x\lthough  Charles 
II.  issued  a  warrant  for  its  demolition,  this  was  to  a 
great  extent  disregarded.  Prynne,  the  sturdy  Puri- 
tan, was  confined  here  in  Charles  I.'s  time.  The 
town  at  Caernarvon,  notwithstanding  its  famous 
history  and  the  possession  of  the  greatest  ruin  in 
Wales,  now  derives  its  chief  satisfaction  from  the 
lucrative  but  prosaic  occupation  of  trading  in  slates. 
At  the  northern  extremity  of  Caernarvon  county, 
and  projecting  into  the  Irish  Sea,  is  the  promontory 
known  as  Great  Orme's  Head,  rising  seven  hundred 
feet,  and  near  it  is  the  mouth  of  the  Conway  Kiver. 
The  railway  to  Holyhead  crosses  this  river  on  a 
tubular  bridge  four  hundred  feet  long,  and  runs 
almost  under  the  ruins  of  Conway  Castle,  another 
Welsh  stronghold  erected  by  Edward  I.  We  are 
told  that  this  despotic  king,  when  he  had  completed 
the  conquest  of  Wales,  came  to  Conway,  the  shape 
of  the  town  being  something  like  a  Welsh  harp, 
and  he  ordered  all  the  native  bards  to  be  put  to 
death.  Gray  founded  upon  this  his  ode,  "  The 
Bard,"  beginning — 

"  On  a  rock  wliose  lofty  brow 

Frowns  o'  er  old  Conway's  foaming  flood, 
Robed  in  a  sable  garb  of  woe, 

"With  haggard  eyes  the  poet  stood." 

This  ode  has  so  impressed  the  Conway  folk  that  they 
have  been  at  great  pains  to  discover  the  exact  spot 
Vol.  I.— 3 


31    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Avlicrc  the  desjiaiiing  bard  plungetl  into  the  river, 
and  several  enthusiastie  persons  have  diseovered  the 
actual  site.  The  castle  stands  upon  a  high  rock, 
and  its  builder  soon  after  its  completion  was  be- 
sieged there  by  the  Welsh,  but  before  being  starved 
into  submission  was  relieved  by  the  timely  arrival 
of  a  fleet  with  provisions.  It  was  in  the  hall  of 
Conway  Castle  that  Eichard  II.  signed  his  abdica- 
tion. The  castle  was  stormed  and  taken  by  Crom- 
well's troops  in  the  Civil  Wars,  and  we  are  told  that 
all  the  Irish  found  in  the  garrison  were  tied  in 
couples,  back  to  back,  and  thrown  into  the  river. 
The  castle  was  not  dismantled,  but  the  townsfolk  in 
their  industrious  quarrying  of  slates  have  under- 
mined one  of  the  towers,  which,  though  kept  up  by 
the  solidity  of  the  surrounding  masonry,  is  known 
as  the  ''  Broken  Tower."  There  was  none  of  the 
"bonus  building"  of  modern  times  attempted  in 
these  ponderous  Welsh  castles  of  the  great  King 
Edward.  The  ruins  are  an  oblong  square,  stand- 
ing on  the  edge  of  a  steep  rock  washed  on  two 
sides  by  the  river ;  the  embattled  walls,  partly 
covered  by  ivy,  arc  twelve  to  fifteen  feet  thick, 
jind  are  flanked  by  eight  huge  circular  towers,  each 
forty  feet  in  diameter ;  the  interior  is  in  partial 
ruin,  but  shows  traces  of  its  former  magnificence ; 
the  stately  hall  is  one  hundred  and  thirty  feet  long. 
The  same  architect,  Henry  de  Elreton,  designed 
both    Caernarvon   and    Conway  j    and  we   are    told 


CAERNARVON  AND  CONWAY.  35 

the  curfew  is  still  rung  in  Conway  town.  A  fine 
suspension-bridge  now  crosses  the  river  opposite 
the  castle,  its  towers  being  built  in  harmony  with 
the  architecture  of  the  place,  so  that  the  structure 
looks  much  like  a  drawbridge  for  the  fortress. 
Although  the  Conway  River  was  anciently  a  cele- 
brated pearl-fishery,  slate-making,  as  at  Caernarvon, 
is  now  the  chief  industry  of  the  town. 

There  are  many  other  historic  places  in  Caernar- 
vonshire, and  also  splendid  bits  of  rural  and  coast 
scenery,  while  the  attractions  for  the  angler  as  well 
as  the  artist  are  almost  limitless.  One  of  the 
prettiest  places  for  sketching,  as  well  as  a  spot 
where  the  fisherman's  skill  is  often  rewarded,  is 
Bettws-y-Coed.  This  pretty  village,  which  derives 
its  name  from  a  religious  establishment — "  Bede- 
house  in  the  Wood  " — that  Avas  formerly  there,  but 
long  ago  disappeared,  is  a  favorite  resort  for  ex- 
plorations of  the  ravines  leading  down  from  Mount 
Snowdon,  which  towers  among  the  clouds  to  the 
southward.  Not  far  away  are  the  attractive  Falls 
of  the  Conway,  and  from  a  rock  above  them  is  a 
good  view  of  the  wonderful  ravine  of  Fors  Noddy n, 
through  which  the  river  flows.  Around  it  there  is 
a  noble  assemblage  of  hills  and  headlands.  Here, 
joining  with  the  Conway,  comes  .through  another 
ravine  the  pretty  Machno  in  a  succession  of  spark- 
ling cascades  and  rapids.  Not  far  away  is  the  wild 
and  lonely  valley  of  the  Lledr,  another  tributary  of 


36    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

tlie  Conway,  wliich  comes  tumbling  down  a  romantic 
fissure  cut  into  tlie  frowning  sides  of  tlie  mountain. 
At  Dohvyddelan  a  solitary  tower  is  all  that  remains 
of  the  castle,  once  commanding  from  its  bold  j)erch 
on  the  rocks  the  narrow  pass  in  the  valley.  It  is  at 
present  a  little  village  of  slate-quarriers.  The 
Llugwy  is  yet  another  attractive  tributary  of  the 
Conway,  which  boasts  in  its  course  the  ]\hayadr-y- 
AVennol,  or  the  Swallow  Fall.  This,  after  a  spell  of 
rainy  weather,  is  considered  the  finest  cataract  in 
Wales  for  the  breadth  and  volume  of  the  water  that 
descends,  though  not  for  its  height.  This  entire 
region  is  full  of  charming  scenery,  and  of  possibly 
what  some  may  love  even  better,  good  trout-fishing. 
Following  the  Conway  Valley  still  further  up,  and 
crossing  over  the  border  into  Denbigh,  we  come  to 
the  little  market-town  of  Llanrwst.  It  contains 
two  attractive  churches,  the  older  one  containing 
many  curious  monuments  and  some  good  carvings, 
the  latter  having  been  brought  from  ^laenant  Abbey. 
But  the  chief  curiosity  of  this  little  Welsh  settle- 
ment is  the  bridge  crossing  the  Conway.  It  was 
constructed  by  Inigo  Jones,  and  is  a  three-arched 
stone  bridge,  which  has  the  strange  peculiarity  that 
by  pushing  a  particular  portion  of  the  parapet  it 
can  be  made  to  vibrate  from  one  end  to  the  other. 
Gwydyr  Castle,  long  the  seat  of  the  Wynnes,  but 
now  the  property  of  Earl  Carrington,  is  in  the 
neighborhood,  a  small  part  of  the  original  mansion 


THE  COAST  OF  MERIONETH.  37 

built  in  1555  remaining.  N<ear  Trefriw  lived 
Taliesin,  the  father  of  Welsh  poetry,  and  a  monu- 
ment erected  by  that  nobleman  on  the  river-bank 
perpetuates  Lis  memory. 

The  recollection  among  the  Welsh  of  the  life  and 
exploits  of  the  great  chieftain  of  former  times, 
Madoc,  is  held  very  dear  in  Caernarvonshire,  and  is 
preserved  not  only  in  many  legends,  but  also  in  the 
thriving  and  pleasant  little  seaport  known  as  Port 
Madoc,  which  has  grown  up  out  of  the  slate-trade. 
Its  wharf  is  a  wilderness  of  slates,  and  much  of  the 
land  in  the  neighborhood  has  been  recovered  from  the 
sea.  The  geology  as  well  as  the  scenery  here  is  an 
interesting  study.  In  fact,  the  whole  Caernarvon 
coast,  which  stretches  away  to  the  south-west  in  the 
long  peninsula  that  forms  Cardigan  Bay,  is  full  of 
pleasant  and  attractive  locations  for  student  and 
tourist,  and  entwined  around  all  are  weird  legends 
of  the  heroes  and  doings  of  the  mystical  days  of  the 
dim  past,  Avhen  Briton  and  Roman  contended  for  the 
mastery  of  this  historic  region. 

THE    COAST    OF   MERIONETH. 

Let  us  make  a  brief  excursion  south  of  Mount 
Snowdon,  along  the  coast  of  the  pastoral  county  of 
Merioneth,  where  Nature  has  put  many  crags  and 
stones  and  a  little  gold  and  wheat,  but  where  the 
people's  best  reliance  is  their  flocks.  At  the  place 
where  the  Mawddach  joins  the    sea   is  Barmouth, 


38   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

where  a  fisliing-villagc  has  of  late  years  bloomed 
into  a  fasliionablc  watering-place.  The  houses  arc 
Liiilt  on  a  strip  of  sand  and  the  precipitous  hillside 
beyond,  and  the  cottages  are  perched  wherever  they 
can  conveniently  hold  on  to  the  crags,  the  devious 
pathways  and  flights  of  stops  leading  up  to  them 
presenting  a  quaint  aspect.  The  bends  of  the 
Mawddach,  as  it  goes  inland  among  the  hills,  present 
miles  of  unique  scenery,  the  great  walls  of  Cader 
Idris  closing  the  background.  Several  hilltops  in 
the  neighborhood  contain  fortifications,  and  are 
marked  by  the  old  tombs  known  as  cromlechs  and 
Druids'  altars.  On  the  sea-coast  curious  reefs  pro- 
ject, the  chief  of  them  being  St.  Patrick's  Cause- 
way. The  legend  tells  us  that  a  Welsh  chieftain 
fifteen  hundred  years  ago  constructed  these  reefs  to 
protect  the  lowlands  from  the  incursions  of  the  sea, 
and  on  the  lands  thus  reclaimed  there  stood  no  less 
than  twelve  fortified  Welsh  cities.  But,  unfortu- 
nately, one  stormy  night  the  guardian  of  the  em- 
bankments got  drunk,  and,  slumbering  at  the  critical 
moment,  the  waves  rushed  in,  sweeping  all  before 
them.  In  the  morning,  whore  had  before  been 
fortified  cities  and  a  vast  population,  there  was  only 
a  waste  of  waters.  St.  Patrick,  we  are  told,  used 
his  causeway  to  bear  him  dryshod  as  far  as  possible 
when  he  walked  the  waters  to  Ireland. 

I^et  us  penetrate  into  the  interior  by  going  up  the 
romantic  valley  of  the  Mawddach  and  viewing  the 


THE  COAST  OF  MERIONETH.  39 

frowning  sides  of  the  chief  Merioneth  mountain, 
CaJer  IJris,  which  towers  on  the  right  hand  to  the 
height  of  2925  feet.  It  is  a  long  ridge  rather  than 
a  peak,  and  steep  precipices  guard  the  upper  portion. 
Two  little  lakes  near  the  summit,  enclosed  by  cliffs, 
afford  magnificent  scenery.  Here  is  "  Idris's  Chair," 
where  the  grim  magician,  who  used  to  make  the 
mountain  his  home,  sat  to  perform  his  incantations, 
whilst  in  a  hollow  at  the  summit  he  had  his  couch. 
According  to  Welsh  tradition,  whoever  passed  the 
night  there  would  emerge  in  the  morning  either  mad 
or  a  poet.  This  mountain,  like  Snowdon,  is  said  to 
have  been  formerly  a  volcano,  and  legends  tell  of  the 
fiery  outbursts  that  came  from  its  craters,  now  occu- 
pied by  the  two  little  lakes.  But  the  truth  of  these 
legends,  though  interwoven  into  Welsh  poetry,  is 
denied  by  prosaic  geologists.  A  rough  and  steep 
track,  known  as  the  "  Fox's  Path,"  leads  to  the  sum- 
mit, and  there  is  a  fine  view  northward  across  the 
valleys  to  the  distant  summits  of  Snowdon  and  its 
attendant  peaks,  while  spread  at  our  feet  to  the 
w^estward  is  the  broad  expanse  of  Cardigan  Bay. 
Lakes  abound  in  the  lowlands,  and  pursuing  the 
road  up  the  Mawddach  we  pass  the  "  Pool  of  the 
Three  Pebbles."  Once  upon  a  time  three  stones 
got  into  the  shoe  of  the  giant  Idris  as  he  was  walk- 
ing about  his  domain,  and  he  stopped  here  and  throw 
them  out.  Here  they  still  remain — three  ponderous 
boulders — in  the  lake. 


40    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

"Wo  leave  tlic  ^rawddaeh  and  follow  its  tributary, 
the  little  river  Wnion,  as  it  ripples  along  over  its 
pebbly  bed  guarded  by  strips  of  meadow.  Soon  we 
come  to  the  lovely  "  Village  of  the  Hazels,"  Dol- 
gelly,  standing  in  the  narrow  valley,  and  probably 
the  prettiest  spot  in  Wales.  Steep  hills  rise  on 
either  hand,  with  bare  craggy  summits  and  the 
lower  slopes  richly  wooded.  Deep  dells  running 
into  the  hills  vary  the  scenery,  and  thus  the  town 
is  set  in  an  amphitheatre  of  hills,  up  whose  flanks 
the  houses  seem  to  climb.  There  is  a  little  old 
church,  and  in  a  back  court  are  the  ruins  of  the  "  Par- 
liament House,"  where  Owen  Glendower  assembled 
the  Welsh  Tarliament  in  1404.  Tiie  Torrent  Walk, 
where  the  stream  from  the  mountain  is  spanned  by 
picturesque  bridges,  is  a  favorite  resort  of  the  artist, 
and  also  one  of  the  most  charming  bits  of  scenery 
in  the  neighborhood  of  this  beautiful  town.  Pursu- 
ing the  valley  farther  up  and  crossing  the  watershed, 
we  come  to  the  largest  inland  water  of  Wales,  the 
beautifid  Bala  Lake,  heretofore  referred  to  in  de- 
scribing the  river  Dee,  which  drains  it.  It  is  at  an 
elevation  of  six  hundred  feet,  surrounded  by  moun- 
tain-peaks, and  the  possibility  of  making  it  avail- 
able as  a  water-supply  for  London  has  been  con- 
sidered. 

There  is  an  attractive  place  on  the  ^lerioneth 
coast  to  the  southward  of  Yarmouth,  at  the  mouth 
of  the  liheidol,  and  near  the  estuary  of  the  river 


THE  COAST  OF  MERIONETH.  41 

Dovey.  A  ruined  tower  on  a  low  eminence  guards 
the  harbor,  where  now  is  a  fashionable  watering- 
place,  and  is  almost  all  that  remains  of  the  once 
powerful  Aberystwith  Castle,  built  by  Gilbert  de 
Strongbow,  and  destroyed  by  Oliver  Cromwell. 
Portions  of  the  entrance-gate  and  barbican  can  be 
traced,  while  the  modern  houses  of  the  town  are 
spread  to  the  northward  along  the  semicircular  bay. 
The  University  College  of  Wales  is  located  here, 
and  the  town  is  popularly  known  as  the  "  Welsh 
Brighton,"  while  among  its  antiquities  in  the 
suburbs  is  the  ruined  castellated  mansion  of  Plas 
Crug,  said  to  have  been  Glendower's  home.  On 
the  northern  part  of  the  Merioneth  coast  is  the 
entrance  to  the  pleasant  vale  of  Ffestiniog,  another 
attractive  spot  to  tourists.  Tan-y-bwlch  and  Maent- 
wrog  are  romantic  villages  adjoining  each  other  in 
this  pretty  valley  full  of  waterfalls,  among  these 
being  the  renowned  Black  Cataract  and  the  Raven 
Fall. 

About  twelve  miles  north  of  Barmouth  the  pict- 
uresque Harlech  Castle  stands  on  a  promontory 
guarding  the  entrance  to  the  Traeth.  The  cliff  is 
precipitous,  with  just  enough  level  surface  on  the 
top  to  accommodate  the  castle.  The  place  is  a 
quadrangle,  with  massive  round  towers  at  the 
corners  connected  by  lofty  curtain-walls.  Circular 
towers,  protected  by  a  barbican,  guard  the  entrance 
on  the  land  side.     Deep  ditches  cut    in    the    rock 


42  ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVR 

surround  the  castle  where  that  defence  is  necessary. 
From  this  fortress  on  the  Kock  of  Harlech  the  view 
is  magnificent.  This  crag  is  said  to  have  supported 
a  castle  as  early  as  the  third  century,  when  I^dy 
Bronwen  built  it,  and,  being  of  most  sensitive  honor, 
died  afterwards  of  grief  because  her  husband  had 
struck  her.  Unhappily,  she  was  in  advance  of  her 
age  in  her  demonstration  of  woman's  rights.  An- 
other castle  replaced  the  first  one  in  the  sixth  century, 
and  some  of  its  ruins  were  worked  into  the  present 
castle,  which  is  another  achievement  of  the  great 
Welsh  fortress-builder,  Edward  I.,  and  is  well  de- 
scribed as  "  the  ideal  castle  of  childhood — high- 
perched,  four-square,  round-towered  and  impres- 
sively massive."  It  has  stood  several  sieges.  Owen 
Glendower  held  it  five  years  against  the  English. 
When  Edward  IV.  became  king,  Harlech  still  held 
out  for  the  Lancastrian  party,  the  redoubtable  Welsh- 
man, David  ap  Ifon,  being  the  governor.  Sum- 
moned to  surrender,  the  brave  David  replied, 
''  I  lield  a  town  in  France  till  all  the  old  women 
in  Wales  heard  of  it,  and  now  I  will  hold  a  castle 
in  Wales  till  all  the  old  women  in  France  hear 
of  it."  But  David  was  starved  into  surrender, 
.ind  then  Edward  IV.  tried  to  break  the  terms  of 
capitulation  made  by  Sir  Richard  Pembroke,  the 
besieger.  Sir  Richard,  more  generous,  told  the 
king,  "Then,  by  Heaven,  I  will  let  David  and 
his  garrison  into  Harlech  again,  and  Your  Highness 


THE  COAST  OF  MERIONETH.  43 

may  fetch  him  out  by  any  who  can,  and  if  you 
demand  my  life  for  his,  take  it."  The  song  of 
''  The  March  of  the  Men  of  Harlech  "  is  a  memorial 
of  this  siege.  Harlech  was  the  last  Welsh  fortress 
during  the  Civil  Wars  that  held  out  for  Charles  I., 
and  since  then  it  has  been  gradually  falling  into 
decay. 

We  have  now  conducted  the  tourist  to  the  chief 
objects  in  North  Wales.  The  railway  runs  on  to 
Holyhead,  built  on  the  extreme  point  of  Holy  Island 
on  the  western  verge  of  Anglesea,  where  there  are  a 
fine  harbor  of  refuge,  lighthouses,  and  an  excellent 
port.  Here  comes  the  "  Wild  Irishman,"  as  the  fast 
train  is  called  that  runs  between  London  and  Ireland, 
and  its  passengers  are  quickly  transferred  to  the 
swift  steamers  that  cross  the  Channel  to  Dublin 
harbor.  Lighthouses  dot  the  cliffs  on  the  coast,  and 
at  this  romantic  outpost  we  will  close  the  survey  of 
North  Wales. 

"  Tliere  ever-dimpling  Ocean's  cheek 
,    Reflects  tlie  tints  of  many  a  peak, 
Caught  by  the  laughing  tides  that  lave 
Those  Edens  of  the  Western  wave." 


LIVERPOOL  NORTHWARD   TO  THE 
SCOTTISH   BORDER. 


n. 


LIVERPOOL    NORTHWARD  TO  THE  SCOTTISH 
BORDER. 

Lancasliire  —  Warrington  —  Manchester  —  Fumess  Abbey — The 
Kibble — Stonyhurst— Lancaster  Castle — Isle  of  Man — Castle- 
town— Rushen  Castle — Peele  Castle — The  Lake  Country — 
Windermere— Lodore  Fall — Derwentwater — Keswick — Greta 
Hall — Southey,  Wordsworth,  and  Coleridge — Skiddaw — The 
Border  Castles — Kendal  Castle — Brougham  Hall — The  Sol  way 
— Carlisle  Castle— Scaleby  Castle — Naworth — Lord  William 
Howard. 

LANCASHIRE. 

The  great  manufacturing  county  of  England  for 
cotton  and  Avoollen  spinning  and  -weaving  is  Lan- 
cashire. Liverpool  is  the  seaport  for  the  vast  aggre- 
gation of  manufacturers  who  own  the  huge  mills  of 
Manchester,  Salford,  Warrington,  Wigan,  Oldham, 
Rochdale,  Bolton,  Blackburn,  Preston,  and  a  score 
of  other  towns,  whose  operatives  work  into  yarns 
and  fabrics  the  millions  of  bales  of  cotton  and  wool 
that  come  into  the  Mersey.  The  warehouse  and 
factory,  with  the  spinners'  cottages  and  the  manu- 
facturers' villas,  make  up  these  towns,  almost  all  of 
modern  growth,  and  the  busy  machinery  and  snjok- 
ing   chimneys   leave   little   chance  for   romance   in 

47 


48    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Southern  Lancashire.  It  was  in  this  section  that 
trade  iirst  conipelletl  the  use  of  modern  improve- 
ments: here  were  used  the  earliest  steam-engines; 
licre  labored  Arkwriglit  to  perfect  the  spinning 
macliinery,  and  Stephenson  to  build  railways.  To 
meet  the  necessities  of  communication  between 
Liverpool  and  Manchester,  the  first  canal  was  dug 
in  England,  and  this  was  followed  afterwards  by  the 
first  experimental  railway  ;  the  canal  was  constructed 
by  Brindley,  and  was  called  the  "Grand  Trunk 
Canal,"  being  twenty-eight  miles  long  from  Man- 
chester to  the  Mersey  Kiver,  at  Runcorn  above 
Liverpool,  and  Avas  opened  in  1707.  The  railway 
was  opened  in  1830 ;  the  odd  little  engine,  the 
*'  Rocket,"  then  drew  an  excursion-train  over  it,  and 
the  opening  was  marred  by  an  accident  which  killed 
Joseph  Huskisson,  one  of  the  members  of  Parlia- 
ment for  Liverpool.  Let  us  follow  this  railway, 
which  now  carries  an  enormous  traffic  out  of  Liver- 
pool, eastward  along  the  valley  of  the  Mersey,  and 
in  a  few  miles  we  pass  Easthain,  where  the  new 
]Manchester  ship  canal,  one  of  the  greatest  works 
of  modern  times,  enters  the  ^lersey,  through  three 
large  locks,  the  outer  gates  weighing  nearly  three 
hundred  tons  apiece.  This  canal,  opened  in  January, 
1894,  is  about  thirty-five  miles  long,  twenty-six  feet 
deep  and  one  hundred  and  twenty  feet  wide  at  the 
botfoin,  and  cost  $75,000,000,  about  double  the  origi- 
nal estimate.     It  follows  up  the  valley  of  the  Mersey 


MANCHESTER.  49 

and  its  tributary,  the  Irwoll,  has  five  locks,  and 
terminates  at  Old  TrafFord,  Manchester,  where  the 
docks  on  both  sides  of  the  Irwell  cover  one  hundred 
and  ten  acres  and  the  quay  frontage  extends  over 
fiv^e  miles.  The  railway,  however,  takes  us  by  a 
more  direct  line  past  Warrington,  with  its  quaint 
old  timbered  market-house,  and  then  up  its  tribu- 
tary, the  Irwell,  thirty-one  miles  from  Liverpool 
to  Manchester. 

MANCHESTER. 

The  chief  manufacturing  city  of  England  has  not 
a  striking  effect  upon  the  visitor  as  he  approaches  it. 
It  is  scattered  over  a  broad  surface  upon  a  gently 
undulating  plain,  and  its  suburbs  straggle  out  into 
the  country  villages,  which  it  is  steadily  absorbing 
in  its  rapid  growth ;  the  Irwell  passes  in  a  winding 
course  through  the  city,  receiving  a  couple  of  tribu- 
taries ;  this  river  divides  Manchester  from  Salford, 
but  a  dozen  bridges  unite  them.  No  city  in  England 
has  had  such  rapid  growth  as  Manchester  in  this 
century ;  it  has  increased  from  about  seventy  thou- 
sand people  at  the  beginning  of  the  century  to 
900,000  now ;  and  this  is  all  the  effect  of  the  de- 
velopment of  manufacturing  industry.  Yet  Man- 
chester is  one  of  the  oldest  towns  in  England,  for 
there  was  a  Roman  camp  at  Mancunium,  as  the 
Caesars  called  it,  in  the  first  century  of  the  Christian 
era ;    and  we  are  also  told  that  in  the  days  when 

Vol.  I.— 4 


50  ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVR 

giants  lived  in  England  it  was  the  scene  of  a  terrific 
combat  between  Sir  Launcelot  of  the  Lake  and  the 
giant  Tarqnin.  A  ballad  tells  the  story,  but  it  is 
easier  read  in  prose  :  Sir  Launcelot  was  travelling 
near  Manchester  when  he  heard  that  this  giant  held 
in  durance  vile  a  number  of  knights — "  threescore 
and  four"  in  all;  a  damsel  conducts  him  to  the 
giant's  castlc-gatc,  "near  ^ranchestor,  fair  town," 
where  a  copper  basin  hung  to  do  duty  as  a  bell ;  he 
strikes  it  so  hard  as  to  break  it,  when  out  comes  the 
giant  ready  for  the  fray ;  a  tcrriHc  combat  ensues, 
and  the  giant,  finding  that  he  has  met  his  match, 
offers  to  release  the  captives,  provided  his  adversary 
is  not  a  certain  knight  that  slew  his  brother.  Un- 
fortunately, it  happens  that  Sir  Launcelot  is  the  very 
same,  and  the  combat  is  renewed  Avith  such  vigor 
that  the  giant  is  slain,  ''  to  the  great  contentment  of 
many  persons." 

The  ancient  ^lancunium  was  a  little  camp  and 
city  of  about  twelve  acres,  partly  bounded  by  a 
tributary  of  the  Irwell  known  as  the  ^Fedlock.  A 
ditch  on  the  land-side  was  still  visible  in  the  last 
century,  and  considerable  portions  of  the  old  Roman 
walls  also  remained  within  two  hundred  years. 
]\rany  Roman  relics  have  been  discovered  in  the  city, 
and  at  Knott  Mill,  the  site  of  the  giant  Tarquin's 
castle,  a  fragment  of  the  Roman  wall  is  said  to  be 
still  visible.  The  town  in  the  early  Tudor  days  had 
a  college,  and  then  a  cathedral,  and  it  was  besieged 


MANCHESTER.  51 

in  the  Civil  Wars,  though  it  steadily  grew,  and  in 
Charles  II.'s  time  it  was  described  as  a  busy  and 
opulent  place  ;  but  it  had  barely  six  thousand  people. 
Cotton-spinning  had  then  begun,  the  cotton  coming 
from  Cyprus  and  Smyrna.  In  1700  life  in  Man- 
chester, as  described  in  a  local  guide-book,  was  noted 
by  close  application  to  business ;  the  manufacturers 
were  in  their  warehouses  by  six  in  the  morning, 
breakfasted  at  seven  on  bowls  of  porridge  and  milk, 
into  which  masters  and  apprentices  dipped  their 
spoons  indiscriminately,  and  dined  at  twelve ;  the 
ladies  went  out  visiting  at  two  in  the  afternoon,  and 
attended  church  at  four.  Manchester  was  conserva- 
tive in  the  Jacobite  rebellion,  and  raised  a  regiment 
for  the  Pretender,  but  the  royalist  forces  defeated  it, 
captured  the  officers  and  beheaded  them.  Man- 
chester politics  then  were  just  the  opposite  of  its 
present  Liberal  tendencies,  and  it  was  Byrom,  a 
Manchester  man,  who  wrote  the  quaint  epigram  re- 
garding the  Pretender  and  his  friends  which  has 
been  so  often  quoted  : 

"God  bless  the  King— I  mean  our  faith's  defender  I 
God  bless  fno  harm  in  blessing)  the  Pretender  ! 
But  who  Pretender  is,  or  who  is  King — 
God  bless  us  all ! — that's  quite  another  thing." 

It  was  the  rapid  growth  of  manufacturing  industry 
in  Manchester  that  changed  its  politics,  and  it  was 
here  that  was  first  conspicuously  advocated  the  free- 


52    ENGLAND,  TICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

trade  agitation  in  England  which  triumphed  in  the 
repeal  of  the  Corn  Laws,  so  as  to  admit  food  free 
of  duty  for  the  operatives,  and  in  the  Reform  bill 
that  changed  the  representation  in  Parliament.  That 
tine  building,  the  "  Free-Trade  llall,"  is  a  monument 
of  this  agitation  in  which  Manchester  took  such  promi- 
nent part.  As  the  city  has  grown  in  wealth,  so  has  its 
architectural  appearance  improved ;  its  school-  and 
college-buildings  «ire  very  fine,  particularly  Owens 
College,  munificently  endowed  by  a  leading  merchant. 
The  ^Manchester  Cathedral  is  an  ancient  building 
overlooking  the  Ii-well,  which  has  had  to  be  renewed 
in  so  many  parts  that  it  has  a  com})aratively  modern 
aspect.  Other  English  cathedrals  arc  more  impos- 
ing, but  this,  "  the  ould  paroeh  church  "  spoken  of 
by  the  ancient  chroniclers,  is  highly  j)rized  by  the 
townsfolk  ;  the  architecture  is  Perpendicular  and  of 
many  dates.  Until  recently  this  was  the  only  parish 
church  in  Manchester,  and  consecpiently  all  the  mar- 
riages for  the  city  had  to  be  celebrated  there  ;  the 
number  was  at  times  very  large,  especially  at  Easter, 
and  not  a  few  tales  are  told  of  how,  in  the  confusion, 
the  wrong  pairs  were  joined  together,  and  when  the 
mistake  was  discovered  respliced  with  little  cere- 
mony. It  was  in  this  Manchester  Cathedral  that  one 
rector  is  sai<l  to  have  generally  begun  the  marriage 
service  by  instructing  the  awaiting  crowd  to  "  sort 
yourselves  in  the  vestry." 

8ome  of  the  public  buildings  in  Manchester  are 


MANCHESTER.  53 

most  sumptuous.  The  Assize  Courts  are  constructed 
in  rich  style,  Avith  lofty  Pointed  roofs  and  a  tall  tower, 
and  make  one  of  the  finest  modern  buildings  in  Eng- 
land. The  great  hall  is  a  grand  apartment,  and  be- 
hind the  courts  is  the  prison,  near  which  the  Fenians 
in  1867  made  the  celebrated  rescue  of  the  prisoners 
from  the  van  for  which  some  of  the  assailants  were 
hanged  and  others  transported.  The  Royal  Exchange 
is  a  massive  structure  in  the  Italian  style,  with  a  fine 
portico,  dome,  and  towers;  the  hall  within  is  said  to 
be  probably  the  largest  room  in  England,  having  a 
width  of  ceiling,  without  supports,  of  one  hundred 
and  twenty  feet.  Here  on  cotton- market  days  as- 
semble the  buyers  and  sellers  from  all  the  towns  in 
Lancashire,  and  they  do  an  enormous  traffic.  The 
new  Town-Hall  is  also  a  fine  building,  where  the  de- 
partments of  the  city  government  are  accommodated, 
and  where  they  have  an  apartment  dear  to  every 
Englishman's  heart — "  a  kitchen  capable  of  preparing 
a  banquet  for  eight  hundred  persons."  The  Avarchouses 
of  Manchester  are  famous  for  their  size  and  solidity,  and 
could  Arkwright  come  back  and  see  what  his  cotton- 
spinning  machinery  has  produced  he  would  be  amazed. 
It  was  in  Manchester  that  the  famous  Dr.  Dalton,  the 
founder  of  the  atomic  theory  in  chemistry,  lived ; 
he  was  a  devout  Quaker,  like  so  many  of  the  towns- 
people, but  unfortunately  was  color-blind ;  he  ap- 
peared on  one  occasion  in  a  scarlet  waistcoat,  and 
when  taken  to  task  declared  it  seemed  to  him  a  very 


5t   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

quiet,  unoLtrusivG  color,  just  like  Lis  own  coat. 
Sevoral  fine  parks  grace  the  suburbs  of  Manchester, 
and  King  Cotton  has  made  this  thriving  community 
the  second  city  in  England,  while  for  miles  along  the 
beautifully  shaded  roads  that  lead  into  the  suburbs 
the  opulent  merchants  and  manufacturers  have  built 
their  ornamental  villas. 

FURNESS    AND    STONYIIURST. 

The  irregularly-shaped  district  of  Lancashire 
j)artly  cut  off  from  the  remainder  of  the  county  by 
an  arm  of  the  Irish  Sea  is  known  as  Furness.  It  is 
a  Avild  and  rugged  region,  best  known  from  the 
famous  Furness  Abbey  and  its  port  of  Barrow-in- 
Furness,  one  of  the  most  remarkable  examples  in 
England  of  quick  city  growth.  Forty  years  ago  this 
was  an  insignificant  fishing-village ;  now  Barrow  has 
magnificent  docks  and  a  fine  harbor  protected  by 
the  natural  breakwater  of  Walney  Island,  great  iron- 
foundries  and  the  largest  jute-manufactory  in  the 
world  ;  while  it  has  of  late  years  also  become  a  favorite 
port  for  iron  shipbuilding.  About  two  miles  distant, 
and  in  a  romantic  glen  called  the  Valley  of  Deadly 
Kightshade,  not  far  fi'om  the  sea,  is  one  of  the  finest 
cxamjdes  of  mediajval  church  architecture  in  Eng- 
land, the  ruins  of  Furness  Abbey,  founded  in  the 
twelfth  century  by  King  Stephen  and  ^laud,  his 
queen.  It  was  a  splendid  abbey  standing  high  in 
rank  and  power,  its  income  in  the  reign  of  Edward 


jfurn€ss  Bbbc\>. 


FURNESS  AND  STONYHURST.  55 

I.  being  S90,000  a  year,  an  enormous  sum  for  that 
early  day.  The  ruins  are  in  fine  preservation,  and 
effigies  of  Stephen  and  Maud  are  on  each  side  of  the 
great  east  window.  For  twelve  reigns  the  charters 
of  sovereigns  and  bulls  of  popes  confirmed  the  abbots 
of  Furness  in  their  extraordinary  powers,  which  ex- 
tended over  the  district  of  Furness,  while  the  situa- 
tion of  the  abbey  made  them  military  chieftains,  and 
they  erected  a  watch-tower  on  a  high  hill,  from 
which  signals  alarmed  the  coast  on  the  approach  of 
an  enemy.  The  church  is  three  hundred  and  four 
feet  long,  and  from  the  centre  rose  a  tower,  three  of 
the  massive  supporting  pillars  of  which  remain,  but 
the  tower  has  fallen  and  lies  a  mass  of  rubbish  ;  the 
stained  glass  from  the  great  east  window  having  been 
removed  to  Bowness  Church,  in  Westmorelandshire. 
The  abbey  enclosure,  covering  eighty -five  acres,  was 
surrounded  by  a  Avail,  the  ruins  of  which  are  now 
covered  Avith  thick  foliage.  This  renowned  abbey 
was  surrendered  and  dismantled  in  Henry  VIII.'s 
reign  ;  the  present  hotel  near  the  ruins  was  formerly 
the  abbot's  residence. 

The  river  Ribble,  Avhich  Aoaa^s  into  the  Irish  Sea 
through  a  wide  estuary,  drains  the  western  slopes  of 
the  Pennine  Hills,  which  divide  Lancashire  from 
Yorkshire.  Up  in  the  north-western  portion  of 
Laneashfre,  near  the  bases  of  these  hills,  is  a  moist 
region  knoAvn  as  the  parish  of  Mitton;  where,  as  the 
poet  tells  us, 


56   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

"The  Ilodder,  the  Calder,  Ribble,  and  rain 
All  meet  together  in  Mitton  domain." 

In  ^litton  parish,  amid  the  woods  along  the  IloilJor 
and  on  the  north  side  of  the  valley  of  the  Kib- 
ble, stands  the  splendid  domed  towers  of  the  ba- 
ronial edifice  of  8tonyhurst,  now  the  famous  Jesuit 
College  of  England,  where  the  sons  of  the  Catho- 
lic nobility  and  gentry  are  educated.  The  pres- 
ent building  is  about  three  hundred  years  old, 
and  quaint  gardens  adjoin  it,  while  quite  an  ex- 
tensive park  surrounds  the  college.  Not  far  away 
are  Clytheroe  Castle  and  the  beautiful  ruins  of 
"Whalloy  Abbey.  The  Stonyhurst  gardens  are  said 
to  remain  substantially  as  their  designer.  Sir  Nicho- 
las Sherburne,  left  them.  A  capacious  water-basin 
is  located  in  the  centre,  with  the  leaden  statue  of 
Regulus  in  chains  standing  in  the  midst  of  the  water. 
Summer-houses  with  tall  jjointcd  roofs  are  at  each 
lower  extremity  of  the  garden,  while  an  observatory 
is  upon  a  commanding  elevation.  Tall  screens  of 
clipped  yews,  cut  square  ten  feet  high  and  five  feet 
thick,  divide  the  beds  upon  one  side  of  the  gardens, 
so  that  as  you  Avalk  among  them  you  are  enveloped 
in  a  green  yet  pleasant  solitude.  Arched  doorways 
are  cut  through  the  yews,  and  in  one  place,  descend- 
ing by  broad  and  easy  steps,  there  is  a  solemn,  cool, 
and  twilight  walk  formed  by  the  overarchijig  yews, 
the  very  place  for  religious  meditation.  Then,  reas- 
cending,  this  sombre  walk  opens  into  air  and  sunshine 


FURNESS  AND  STONYHURST.  57 

amid  delicious  flower-gardens.  On  tlie  opposite  side 
of  tlie  gardens  are  walls  hung  with  fruit,  and  plan- 
tations of  kitchen  vegetables.  This  charming  place 
was  fixed  upon  by  the  Jesuits  for  their  college  in 
1794,  when  driven  from  Liege  by  the  proscriptions 
of  the  French  Revolution.  The  old  building  and 
the  additions  then  erected  enclose  a  large  quad- 
rangular court.  In  the  front  of  the  college,  at  the 
southern  angle,  is  a  line  little  Gothic  church,  built 
fifty  years  ago.  The  college  refectory  is  a  splendid 
baronial  hall.  In  the  Mitton  village-church  near  by 
are  the  tombs  of  the  Sherburne  family,  the  most 
singular  monument  being  that  to  Sir  Richard  and 
his  lady,  which  the  villagers  point  out  as  "  old 
Fiddle  o'  God  and  his  wife" — Fiddle  o'  God  being 
his  customary  exclamation  when  angry,  which  tradi- 
tion says  was  not  seldom.  The  figures  are  kneeling 
— he  in  ruff  and  jerkin,  she  in  black  gown  and  hood, 
with  tan-leather  gloves  extending  up  her  arms. 
These  figures,  being  highly  colored,  as  was  the 
fashion  in  the  olden  time,  have  a  ludicrous  appear- 
ance. We  are  told  that  when  these  monuments 
came  from  London  they  were  the  talk  of  the  whole 
country  round.  A  stonemason  bragged  that  he 
could  cut  out  as  good  a  figure  in  common  stone. 
Taken  at  his  word,  he  was  put  to  the  test,  and 
carved  the  effigy  of  a  knight  in  freestone  which  so 
pleased  the  Sherburne  fiimily  that  they  gave  him 
one  hundred  dollars  for  it,  and  it  is  now  set  in  the 


58   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

wall  outside  tlio   cliurcli,  near  the  uionuments,  and 
attracts  fully  as  uiuoh  attention. 

LANCASTER   CASTLE. 

John  of  Gaunt,  '*  time-honorctl  Lancaster,"  was 
granted  the  Duchy  of  Lancaster  by  his  father,  King 
Edward  IIL,  but  the  place  which  stands  upon  the 
river  Lune  is  of  much  greater  antiquity.  It  was  a 
Konian  camp,  and  hence  its  name.  The  Picts  de- 
stroyed it  when  the  Romans  left ;  the  8axons  after- 
wards restored  it,  and  ultimately  it  gave  the  name 
to  the  county.  King  John  gave  the  town  a  charter, 
and  John  of  Gaunt  rebuilt  the  fortress,  which  be- 
came indissolubly  connected  with  the  fortunes  of  the 
House  of  Lancaster.  Though  sometimes  besieged, 
it  was  maintained  more  for  purposes  of  state  than 
of  war,  and  two  centuries  ago  it  still  existed  in  all 
its  ancient  splendor,  conunanding  the  city  and  the 
sea.  Lancaster  stands  ou  the  slope  of  an  eminence 
rising  from  the  river  Lune,  and  the  castle-towers 
crown  the  summit,  the  fortress  being  spacious,  with 
a  large  courtyard  and  variously-shaped  towers. 
The  keep  is  square,  enormously  strong,  and  de- 
fended by  two  semi-octagonal  towers.  This  keep  is 
known  as  ^'John  of  Gaunt's  Chair,"  and  commands 
a  fine  view  of  the  surrounding  country  and  far  away 
across  the  sea  to  the  distant  outlines  of  the  Isle  of 
Man.  This  fauious  castle,  partly  modernized,  is  now 
used  fur  the  county  jail  and  courts,  the  prison-chapel 


ISLE  OF  MAN.  59 

being  in  tlie  keep.  In  tlie  town  several  large  manu- 
factories attest  the  presiding  genius  of  Lancashire, 
and  the  inn  is  the  comfortable  and  old-fashioned 
King's  Arms  described  by  Dickens. 

ISLE    OF   MAX. 

Let  us  go  off  from  the  Lancashire  coast  to  that 
strange  island  which  lies  in  the  sea  midway  between 
England,  Scotland,  and  L-eland,  and  whose  bold 
shores  are  visible  from  "John  of  Gaunt's  Chair." 
It  stretches  for  thirty-three  miles  from  its  northern 
extremity  at  the  point  of  Ayre  to  the  bold  detached 
cliffs  of  the  little  islet  at  the  southern  end  known  as 
the  Calf  of  Man.  Covering  two  hundred  and 
twenty-seven  square  miles  area,  its  coasts  are  ir- 
regular, its  shores  in  several  places  precipitous,  and 
a  range  of  mountains  traverses  the  entire  island,  the 
highest  peak  being  Snaefell,  rising  2034  feet,  with 
North  Barrule  at  one  extremity  and  Cronk-ny-Jay 
Llaa,  or  "  The  Hill  of  the  Rising  Day,"  at  the  other. 
Man  is  a  miniature  kingdom,  with  its  reproduction, 
sometimes  in  dwarf,  of  everything  that  other  king- 
doms have.  It  has  four  little  rivers,  the  Xeb,  Colby, 
Black  and  Gray  Waters,  with  little  gems  of  cas- 
cades ;  has  its  own  dialect,  the  Manx,  and  a  parlia- 
ment in  miniature,  known  as  the  Council,  or  Upper 
House,  and  the  House  of  Keys.  It  is  a  healthful 
resort,  for  all  the  Avinds  that  blow  come  from  the  sea, 
and  its  sea-views  are  striking,  the  rugged  masses  of 


60   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Bradda  Head,  the  mellow-coloring  of  the  Calf,  and 
the  broad  expanse  of  waters,  dotted  by  scores  of 
fishing-boats,  making  many  scenes  of  artistic  merit. 
Wliile  the  want  of  trees  makes  the  land-views  harsh 
and  cold,  yet  the  glens  and  coves  opening  into  the 
sea  are  the  charms  of  Manx  scenery,  the  high  fuch- 
sia-hedges surrounding  many  of  the  cottages  giving 
bright  coloring  to  the  landscape  when  the  flowers  are 
in  bloom.  It  is  a  beautiful  place,  which  has  become 
the  great  excursion-resort  of  the  people  of  Lanca- 
shire, and  elaborate  dancing-pavilions  and  restau- 
rants at  all  the  landing-places  cater  to  their  amuse- 
ment. After  landing  on  the  island  the  visitor  usually 
first  proceeds  to  solve  the  great  zoological  problem 
80  long  presented  to  the  outer  world,  and  finds  that 
the  Isle  of  Man  does  really  possess  a  breed  of  tailless 
cats,  whose  caudal  extremity  is  either  altogether 
wanting  or  at  most  is  reduced  to  a  merely  rudimental 
substitute. 

CASTLE    IIUSIIEX. 

Landing  at  the  capital,  Castletown,  it  is  found  that 
it  gets  its  name  from  the  ancient  castle  of  Rushcn, 
around  which  the  town  is  built.  Guttred  the  Dane 
is  said  to  have  built  this  castle  nine  hundred  years 
ago,  and  to  be  buried  beneath  it,  although  Cardinal 
AVolsey  constructed  the  surrounding  stone  glacis. 
The  keep — into  which  the  prisoners  had  to  be 
lowered  by  ropes — and  several  parts  of  the  interior 


CASTLE  KUSHEN.  61 

buildings  remain  almost  entire,  but  repeated  sieges 
so  wrecked  the  other  portions  that  they  have  had 
to  be  restored.  At  the  castle-entrance  were  stone 
chairs  for  the  governor  and  judges.  It  was  here 
that  the  eminent  men  who  have  ruled  the  Isle  of 
Man  presided,  among  them  being  Regulus,  who  was 
King  of  Man,  and  the  famous  Percy,  who  was  at- 
tainted of  high  treason  in  1403.  Afterwards  it  was 
ruled  by  the  Earls  of  Derby,  who  relinquished  the 
title  of  king  and  took  that  of  Lord  of  Man,  holding 
their  sovereignty  until  they  sold  it  and  the  castle 
and  patronage  of  the  island  to  the  crown  in  1764  for 
$350,000.  With  such  a  history  it  is  natural  that 
Castle  Rushen  should  have  a  weird  interest  attached 
to  it,  and  the  ancient  chroniclers  tell  of  a  mysterious 
apartment  within  '^  which  has  never  been  opened  in 
the  memory  of  man."  Tradition  says  that  this 
famous  castle  was  first  inhabited  by  fairies,  and 
afterwards  by  tlie  giants,  until  Merlin,  by  his  magic 
power,  dislodged  most  of  the  giants  and  bound  the 
others  in  spells.  In  proof  of  this  it  is  said  there  are 
fine  apartments  underneath  the  ground,  to  explore 
which  several  venturesome  persons  have  gone  down, 
only  one  of  whom  ever  returned.  To  save  the  lives 
of  the  reckless  would-be  explorers,  therefore,  this 
mysterious  apartment,  which  gives  entrance  under- 
ground, is  kept  shut.  The  one  who  returned  is 
described  as  an  "  explorer  of  uncommon  courage," 
who  managed  to  get  back  by  the  help  of  a  clue  of 


G2   KNGLAND,   nCTURKSQl  E  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

packthread  wliicli  he  took  with  him,  and  "vvas  tlius 
al»k'  to  retrace  liis  steps.  lie  had  a  wondrous  tale  to 
tell.  After  passing  a  number  of  vaults,  and  through  a 
long,  narrow  passage  which  descended  for  more  than 
a  mile,  he  saw  a  little  gleam  of  light,  and  gladly 
sought  it  out.  The  light  came  from  a  magnificent 
house,  brilliantly  illuminated.  Having  ''  well  forti- 
fied himself  with  brandy  before  beginning  the  ex- 
ploration," he  courageously  knocked  at  the  door, 
and  at  the  third  knock  a  servant  appeared,  demand- 
ing what  was  wanted.  lie  asked  for  directions  how 
to  proceed  farther,  as  the  house  seemed  to  block  the 
passage.  The  servant,  after  some  parley,  led  him 
through  the  house  and  out  at  the  back  door.  lie 
walked  a  long  di;stancc,  and  then  beheld  another 
house,  more  magnificent  than  the  first,  where,  the 
wind<nvs  being  open,  he  saw  innumerable  lamps 
burning  in  all  the  rooms,  lie  was  about  to  knock, 
but  first  had  the  curiosity  to  peep  through  a  window 
into  the  parlor.  There  was  a  large  black  marble 
table  in  the  middle  of  the  room,  and  on  it  lay  at  full 
length  a  giant  who,  the  explorer  says,  was  "at  least 
fourteen  feet  lonfr  and  ten  feet  round  the  bodv." 
The  giant  lay  with  his  head  pillowed  on  a  book,  as 
if  asleep,  and  there  was  a  prodigious  sword  along- 
side him,  proportioned  to  the  hand  that  was  to  use  it. 
This  sight  was  so  terrifying  that  the  explorer  made 
the  best  of  his  way  back  to  the  first  house,  where 
the  servant  told  liim  that  if  he  had  knocked  at  the 


PEELE  CASTLE.  63 

giant's  door  he  would  have  had  company  enough, 
but  would  have  never  returned.  He  desired  to 
know  what  place  it  was^  but  was  told,  ''  These 
things  are  not  to  be  revealed."  Then  he  made  his 
way  back  to  daylight  by  the  aid  of  the  clue  of  pack- 
thread as  quickly  as  possible,  and  we  are  told  that 
no  one  has  ventured  down  there  since.  This  is  but 
one  of  the  many  talcs  of  mystery  surrounding  the 
venerable  Rushen  Castle. 

PEELE    CASTLE. 

The  Isle  of  Man  derives  its  name  from  the  ancient 
British  word  mon,  which  means  "  isolated."  Around 
this  singular  place  there  are  many  rocky  islets,  also 
isolated,  and  upon  one  of  the  most  picturesque  of 
these,  where  art  and  Nature  have  vied  in  adding 
strength  to  beauty,  is  built  the  castle  of  Peele,  off 
the  western  coast,  overlooking  the  distant  shores  of 
Ireland.  This  castle  is  perched  upon  a  huge  rock, 
rising  for  a  great  height  out  of  the  sea,  and  com- 
pletely inaccessible,  except  by  the  approach  which 
has  been  constructed  on  the  side  towards  the  Isle  of 
Man,  where  the  little  town  of  Peele  is  located. 
After  crossing  the  arm  of  the  sea  separating  the 
castle  from  the  town,  the  visitor,  landing  at  the  foot 
of  the  rock,  ascends  about  sixty  steps,  cut  out  of  it, 
to  the  first  wall,  which  is  massive  and  high,  and 
built  of  the  old  red  sandstone  in  which  the  island 
abounds ;  the  gates  in  this  wall  are  of  wood,  curi- 


64   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVR 

ously  arched  and  carved,  and  four  little  watch-towers 
on  the  wall  overlook  the  sea.  Having  entered,  he 
mounts  by  another  shorter  stairway  cut  out  of  the 
rock  to  the  second  wall,  built  like  the  other,  and 
both  of  them  full  of  portholes  for  cannon.  Pass- 
ing through  yet  a  third  wall,  there  is  found  a  broad 
plain  upon  the  top  of  the  rock,  where  stands  the 
castle,  surrounded  by  four  churches,  three  almost 
entirely  ruined ;  the  other  church  (St.  Germain's) 
is  kept  in  some  repair  because  it  has  within  the 
bishop's  chapel,  while  beneath  is  a  horrible  dungeon 
where  the  sea  runs  in  and  out  through  hollows  of 
the  rock  with  a  continual  roar ;  a  steep  and  narrow 
stairway  descends  to  the  dungeon  and  burial-vaults, 
and  within  are  thirteen  pillars  supporting  the  chapel 
above.  Beware,  if  going  down,  of  failing  to  count 
the  pillars,  for  we  are  told  that  he  who  neglects  this 
is  sure  to  do  something  that  will  occasion  his  con- 
finement in  this  dreadful  dungeon.  This  famous 
castle  of  Pecle  even  in  its  partly-ruined  state  has 
several  noble  apartments,  and  here  were  located 
some  of  the  most  interesting  scenes  of  Scott's  novel  of 
Pcveril  of  the  Peak.  It  was  in  former  days  a  state- 
prison,  and  in  it  were  at  one  time  confined  War- 
wick the  King-maker,  and  also  Gloucester's  haughty 
wife,  fvleanor ;  her  discontented  spectre  was  said  to 
haunt  the  battlements  in  former  years,  and  stand 
motionless  beside  one  of  the  watch-towers,  only  dis- 
appearing when  the  cock  crew  or  church-bell  tolled  ; 


THE  LAKE  COUNTRY.  66 

another  apparition,  a  shaggy  spaniel  known  as  the 
Manthe  Doog,  also  haunted  the  castle,  particularly 
the  guard-chamber,  where  the  dog  came  and  lay 
down  at  candleliglit ;  the  soldiers  lost  much  of  their 
terror  by  the  frequency  of  the  sight,  but  none  of 
them  liked  to  be  left  alone  with  him,  though  he  did 
not  molest  them.  The  dog  came  out  by  a  passage 
through  the  church  where  the  soldiers  had  to  go  to 
deliver  the  keys  to  their  captain,  and  for  moral  sup- 
port they  never  went  that  way  alone.  One  of  tlie 
soldiers,  we  are  told,  on  a  certain  night,  "  being 
much  disguised  in  liquor"  (for  spirits  of  various 
kinds  appear  in  the  Isle  of  Man,  as  most  other 
places),  insisted  ujion  going  alone  with  the  keys,  and 
could  not  be  dissuaded ;  he  said  he  was  determined 
to  discover  whether  the  apparition  was  dog  or  devil, 
and,  snatching  the  keys,  departed  ;  soon  there  was 
a  great  noise,  but  none  ventured  to  ascertain  the 
cause.  When  the  soldier  returned  he  was  speechless 
and  horror-stricken,  nor  would  he  ever  by  word  or 
sign  tell  what  had  happened  to  him,  but  soon  died  in 
agony ;  then  the  passage  was  walled  up,  and  the 
Manthe  Doog  was  never  more  seen  at  Castle  Peele. 

THE    LAKE    COUNTRY. 

North  of  Lancashire,  in  the  counties  of  West- 
moreland and  Cumberland,  is  the  famous  ''Lake 
Country "  of  England.  It  does  not  cover  a  large 
area — in  fact,  a  good  pedestrian  can  walk  from  one 

Vol.  I. — 5 


66   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND   DESCRIPTIVE. 

extremity  of  the  region  to  the  otlier  in  a  day — hut 
its  compact  beauties  have  a  charm  of  rugged  outline 
and  hixuriant  detail  that  in  a  condensed  form  repro- 
duce tlie  Alpine  lakes  of  Northern  Italy.  Derwent- 
Avater  is  conceded  to  be  the  finest  of  these  English 
lakes,  but  there  is  also  great  beauty  in  Windermere 
and  Ulleswater,  Buttermere  and  Wastwater.  The 
Derwent  runs  like  a  thread  through  the  glassy  bead 
of  Derwentwater,  a  niagniticent  oval  lake  set  among 
the  hills,  about  three  miles  long  and  half  that  breadth, 
alongside  which  rises  the  frowning  Mount  Skiddaw 
with  its  pair  of  rounded  heads.  In  entering  the 
Lake  Region  from  the  Lancashire  side  we  first  come 
to  the  pretty  Windermere  Lake,  the  largest  of  these 
inland  sheets  of  Avatcr,  about  ten  miles  long  and  one 
mile  broad  in  the  widest  part.  From  Orrest  Head, 
near  the  village  of  Windermere,  there  is  a  magnifi- 
cent view  of  the  lake  from  end  to  end,  though 
tourists  prefer  usually  to  go  to  the  village  of  Bow- 
ness  on  the  bank,  where  steamers  start  at  frequent 
intervals  and  make  the  circuit  of  the  pretty  lake. 
From  Bowness  the  route  is  by  Rydal  Mount,  where 
the  poet  Wordsworth  lived,  to  Keswick,  about 
twenty-three  miles  distant,  on   Derwentwater. 

The  attractive  Derwent  flows  down  through  the 
Borrowdale  Valley  past  Seathwaite,  where  for  many 
a  year  there  has  been  worked  a  famous  mine  of 
plinnbago:  we  use  it  for  lead-pencils,  but  our  Eng- 
lish ancestors,  while  making  it  valuable  for  marking 


tJartlcr  ColertOflc's  Cottage, 
(Brasmere. 


THE  LAKE  COUNTRY.  67 

their  sheep,  prized  it  still  more  highly  as  a  remedy 
for  colic  and  other  human  ills.  There  are  several 
pencil-mills  in  the  village,  -vvhich,  in  addition  to 
other  claims  for  fame,  is  noted  as  one  of  the  rainiest 
spots  in  England,  the  annual  rainfall  at  Seathwaite 
sometimes  reaching  one  hundred  and  eighty-two 
inches.  The  Derwent  flows  on  through  a  gorge 
past  the  isolated  pyramidal  rock  known  as  Castle 
Crag,  and  the  famous  Bowder  Stone,  which  has 
fallen  into  the  gorge  from  the  crags  above,  to  the 
hamlet  of  Grange,  where  a  picturesque  bridge  spans 
the  little  river.  We  are  told  that  the  inhabitants 
once  built  a  wall  across  the  narrowest  part  of  this 
valley  ;  having  long  noticed  the  coincident  appear- 
ance of  spring  and  the  cuckoo,  they  rashly  con- 
cluded that  the  latter  was  the  cause  of  the  former, 
and  that  if  they  could  only  retain  the  bird  their 
jjlcasant  valley  would  enjoy  perpetual  spring ;  they 
built  the  wall  as  spring  lengthened  into  summer, 
and  with  the  autumn  came  the  crisis.  The  wall  had 
risen  to  a  considerable  height  when  the  cuckoo  with 
the  approach  of  colder  weather  was  sounding  its 
somewhat  asthmatic  notes  as  it  moved  from  tree  to 
tree  down  the  valley  ;  it  neared  the  wall,  and  as  the 
population  held  their  breath  it  suddenly  flew  over, 
and  carried  the  spring  away  with  it  down  the  Der- 
went. Judge  of  the  popular  disgust  when  the  sages 
of  that  region  complainingly  remarked  that,  having 
crossed  but  a  few  inches  above  the  topmost  stones 


G8    ENC.LAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

of  the  wall,  if  the  builders  liad  only  carried  it  a 
course  or  two  higher  the  cuckoo  might  have  been 
kept  at  home,  and  their  valley  thus  have  enjoyed  a 
perennial  spring. 

The  Derwent  flows  on  along  its  gorge,  wliich  has 
been  slowly  ground  out  by  a  glacier  in  past  ages, 
and  enters  the  lake  through  the  marshy,  flat,  reedy 
delta  that  rather  detracts  from  the  appearance  of  its 
upper  end.  Not  far  away  a  small  waterfall  conies 
tumbling  over  the  crags  among  the  foliage ;  this 
miniature  Niagara  has  a  fame  almost  as  great  as 
the  mighty  cataract  of  the  New  World,  for  it  is  the 
"  Fall  of  Lodore,"  about  which,  in  answer  to  his 
little  boy's  question,  "  How  does  the  water  come 
down  at  Lodore  ?"  Southey  wrote  his  well-known 
poem  that  is  such  a  triumph  of  versification,  and 
from  which  this  is  a  quotation  : 

''  riving  and  flinginfr,  writhing  and  wringing, 
Eddying  and  wliisking,  sponting  and  frisking, 

Turning  and  twisting 
Around  and  around,  with  endless  rebound, 
Smiting  and  fighting,  a  sight  to  delight  in. 

Confounding,  astounding, 
Dizzying  and  <leafouing  the  ear  with  its  sound  ; 
All  at  once,  and  all  o'er,  with  mighty  uproar — 
And  this  way  the  water  comes  down  at  Lodore." 

Thus  we  reach  the  border  of  Derwent  water,  nest- 
ling beneath  the  fells  and  crags,  as  its  miniature  sur- 
roundinj;  mountains  are  called.     Little  wooded  islets 


THE  LAKE  COUNTRY.  69 

dimple  the  surface  of  the  lake,  in  the  centre  being 
the  largest,  St.  Herbert's  Island,  where  once  that 
saint  lived  in  a  solitary  cell :  he  was  the  bosom 
friend  of  St.  Cuthbert,  the  missionary  of  Korthum- 
berland,  and  made  an  annual  pilgrimage  over  the 
Pennine  Hills  to  visit  him  ;  loving  each  other  in 
life,  in  death  they  were  not  divided,  for  AVords- 
worth  tells  us  that 

"  These  holy  men  both  died  in  the  same  hour." 

Another  islet  is  known  as  Lord's  Island,  where  now 
the  rooks  are  in  full  possession,  but  where  once  was 
the  home  of  the  ill-fated  Earl  of  Derwentwater, 
who  was  beheaded  in  1716  for  espousing  the  Pre- 
tender's cause.  It  is  related  that  before  his  execu- 
tion on  Tower  Hill  he  closely  viewed  the  block,  and 
finding  a  rough  place  which  might  offend  his  neck, 
he  bade  the  headsman  chip  it  off;  this  done,  he 
cheerfully  placed  his  head  upon  it,  gave  the  sign, 
and  died ;  his  estates  were  forfeited  and  settled  by 
the  king  on  Greenwich  Hospital.  Castle  Hill  rises 
boldly  on  the  shore  above  Derwent  Isle,  where  there 
is  a  pretty  residence,  and  every  few  years  there  is 
added  to  the  other  islets  on  the  bosom  of  the  lake 
the  "  Floating  Island,"  a  mass  of  vegetable  matter 
that  becomes  detached  from  the  marsh  at  the  upper 
end.  At  Friar's  Crag,  beneath  Castle  Hill,  the  lake 
begins  to  narrow,  and  at  Portinscale  the  Derwent 
flows   out,  receives  the  Avaters  of  the   Greta  coming 


70    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

from  Keswick,  and,  after  flowing  a  short  distance 
tlirough  the  meadow-land,  expands  again  into  Bas- 
sentliwaite  Lake,  a  region  of  somewhat  tamer  yet 
still  beautiful  scenery. 

The  town  of  Keswick  stands  some  distance  back 
from  the  border  of  Derwentwater,  and  is  noted  as 
having  been  the  residence  of  Southey.  In  Greta 
Hall,  an  unpretentious  house  in  the  town,  Southey 
lived  for  forty  years,  dying  there  in  1843.  He  was 
laid  to  rest  in  the  parish  church  of  Crosthwaite,  just 
outside  the  town.  At  the  pretty  little  church  there 
is  a  marble  altar-tomb,  the  inscription  on  which  to 
Southey 's  memory  was  written  by  Wordsworth. 
Greta  Hall  was  also  for  three  vears  the  home  of 
Coleridge,  the  two  families  dwelling  under  the  same 
roof.  Behind  the  modest  house  rises  Skiddaw,  the 
bare  crags  of  the  rounded  summits  being  elevated 
over  three  thousand  feet,  and  beyond  it  the  hills  and 
moors  of  the  Skiddaw  Forest  stretch  northward  to 
the  Solway,  with  the  Scruffel  Hill  beyond.  Upon  a 
slope  of  the  mountain,  not  far  from  Keswick,  is  a 
Druids'  circle,  whose  builders  scores  of  centuries 
ago  watched  the  mists  on  Skiddaw's  summit,  as  the 
})eo]tle  there  do  now,  to  foretell  a  change  of  weather 
as  the  clouds  might  rise  or  fall,  for  they  tell  us  that 

"If  Skiddaw  liath  a  cap, 
Scruflel  wots  full  well  of  that" 


THE  BORDER  CASTLES.  71 

THE   BORDER   CASTLES. 

At  Kendal,  in  Westmorelandsliire,  are  the  ruins 
of  Kendal  Castle,  a  relic  of  the  Norman  days,  but 
long  since  gone  to  decay.  Here  lived  the  ancestors 
of  King  Henry  VHI.'s  last  wife,  Queen  Catharine 
Parr.  Opposite  it  are  the  ruins  of  Castle  How,  and 
not  far  away  the  quaint  appendage  known  as  Castle 
Dairy,  replete  with  heraldic  carvings.  It  was  in 
the  town  of  Kendal  that  was  made  the  foresters' 
woollen  cloth  known  as  ''  Kendal  green,"  which  was 
the  uniform  of  Robin  Hood's  band,  but  is  no  longer 
manufactured. 

In  the  northern  part  of  the  county,  on  the  military 
road  to  Carlisle,  are  the  ruins  of  Brougham  Castle, 
built  six  hundred  years  ago.  Here  the  Earl  of 
Cumberland  magnificently  entertained  King  James 
I.  for  three  days  on  one  of  his  journeys  out  of  Scot- 
land. It  is  famous  as  the  home  of  the  late  Henry, 
Lord  Brougham,  whose  ancestors  held  it  for  many 
generations.  The  manor-house,  known  as  Broug- 
ham Hall,  has  such  richness,  variety,  and  extent  of 
prospect  from  its  terraces  that  it  is  called  the 
''  Windsor  of  the  North."  Lord  Brougham  was 
much  attached  to  his  magnificent  home,  and  it  was 
here  in  1860  that  he  finished  his  comprehensive 
work  on  the  British  Constitution,  and  wrote  its 
famous  dedication  to  tlie  queen,  beginning  with  the 
memorable  words,   '^  Madame,  I  presume  to  lay  at 


72    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Your  Majesty's  feet  a  work  the  result  of  many  years' 
diligent  study,  much  calm  reflection,  and  a  long  life's 
experience."  In  close  proximity  to  the  castle  is  the 
Iioman  station  Brocavum,  founded  by  Agricola  in 
A.  D.  79.  Its  outline  is  clearly  defined,  the  camp 
^vitliin  the  inner  ditch  measuring  almost  one  thou- 
sand feet  square.  Various  Roman  roads  lead  from 
it,  and  much  of  the  materials  of  the  outworks  were 
built  into  the  original  Brougham  Castle. 

The  Solway  and  its  firth  divide  England  from 
Scotland,  and  this  borderland  has  been  the  scene  of 
many  deadly  feuds,  though  happily  only  in  the  days 
long  agone.  Tiie  castle  of  Carlisle  was  a  noted 
border  stronghold,  built  of  red  sandstone  by  King 
AViliiam  Kufus,  who  rebuilt  Carlisle,  which  had  then 
lain  in  ruins  two  hundred  years  because  of  the 
forays  of  tiie  Danes.  Richard  III.  enlarged  the 
castle,  and  Henry  VIII.  built  the  citadel.  Here 
]\[ary  Queen  of  Scots  was  once  lodged,  but  in  Eliza- 
beth's time  the  castle  fell  into  decay.  In  the  town 
is  a  fine  cathedral,  which  has  been  thoroughly  re- 
stored, and  in  it  Sir  Walter  Scott  was  married  in 
1797.  In  a  flat  situation  north  of  Carlisle  are  the 
ruins  of  Scalcby  Castle,  once  a  fortress  of  great 
strength,  but  almost  battered  to  pieces  when  it  re- 
sisted Crom well's  forces.  There  are  several  acres 
enclosed  within  the  moat,  intended  for  the  cattle 
when  driven  in  to  escape  the  forays  that  came  over 
the  border.     This  venerable  castle  is  now  a  pictu- 


THE  BORDER  CASTLES.  73 

resque  ruin.  Twelve  miles  nortli-east  of  Carlisle  is 
Xaworth  Castle,  near  where  the  Roman  Wall  crossed 
England.  This  is  one  of  the  finest  feudal  remains 
in  Cumberland,  having  been  the  stronghold  of  the 
Wardens  of  the  Marches,  -who  guarded  the  border 
from  Scottish  incursions.  It  stands  amid  fine  scen- 
ery, and  just  to  the  southward  is  the  Roman  Wall, 
of  which  many  remains  are  still  traced,  while  upon 
the  high  moorland  in  the  neighborhood  is  the  paved 
Roman  Road,  twelve  feet  wide  and  laid  with  stone. 
In  the  valley  of  the  Irthing  is  Gilsland  Spa  and  its 
sulphur  springs,  told  of  in  Guy  Mannering.  Here 
are  pointed  out  in  the  Avooded  valley  the  "  Popping 
Stone  "  where  Scott  is  said  to  have  proposed  to  Miss 
Charpentier,  whom  he  married,  and  the  "  Kissing 
Bush  "  where  he  sealed  the  compact.  At  Naworth 
there  was  always  a  strong  garrison,  for  the  border 
was  rarely  at  peace,  and 

"Stern  on  the  angry  confines  Xawortli  rose, 
In  dark  woods  islanded ;  it^  towers  looked  forth 
And  frowned  defiance  ou  the  angry  North." 

Here  lived,  with  a  host  of  retainers,  the  famous 
"  belted  Will " — Lord  William  Howard,  son  of  the 
fourth  Duke  of  Xorfolk — who  in  the  early  part  of 
the  seventeenth  century  finally  brought  peace  to  the 
border  by  his  judicious  exercise  for  many  years  of 
the  Warden's  powers.  It  is  of  this  famous  soldier 
and  chivalrous  knight,  whose  praises  are  even  yet 


74    ENGLAND,  PICTURP:SQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

sung  in  tlie  borderland,  that  Scott  in  the  "  Lay  of 
the  Last  Minstrel "  has  written — 

"Howard,  than  whom  knight 
Was  never  dubbed  more  bold  in  ligiit, 
Nor,  wlien  from  war  and  armor  free, 
More  famed  for  stately  courtesy." 


LIVERPOOL,  THROUGH  THE  MIDLAND 
COUNTIES,  TO  LONDON. 


III. 

LIVERPOOL,  THROUGH  THE  MIDLAND  COUNTIES, 
TO  LONDON. 

The  Peak  of  Derbyshire — Castleton — Bess  of  Hardwicke — Hard- 
wicke  Hall — Bolsover  Ca.stle — The  Wye  and  the  Derwent — 
Buxton — Bakewell — Haddon  Hall — Tlie  King  of  the  Peak — 
Dorothy  Vernon — Kowsley — The  Peacock  Inn — ^Chatsworth — 
The  Victoria  Regia— ^latlock — Dovedale — Beauchief  Abbey — 
Stafford  Castle— Trentliam  Hall— Tamworth— Tutbury  Castle 
— Chartley  Castle— Alton  Towers— Shrewsbury  Castle — Bridge- 
north —Wenlock  Abbey — Ludlow  Castle — The  Feathers  Inn — 
Lichfield  Cathedral — Dr.  Samuel  Johnson — Coventry — Lady 
Godiva  and  Peeping  Tom — Belvoir  Castle — Charnwood  Forest 
— Groby  and  Bradgate — Elizabeth  Widvile  and  Lady  Jane  Grey 
— Ulverscroft  Priory — Grace  Dieu  Abbey— Ashby  de  la  Zouche 
— Langley  Priory — Leicester  Abbey  and  Castle — Bosworth 
Field — Edgehill — Naseby — The  Land  of  Shakespeare — Strat- 
ford-on-.\  von — Warwick —  Kenilworth  —  Birmingham  —  Boul- 
ton  and  Watt — Fotheringhay  Castle— Holmby  House — Bedford 
Castle — John  Bunyan— Wobum  Abbey  and  the  Russells — 
Stowe — Whaddon  Hall — Great  Hampden — Creslow  House. 

THE    PEAK    OF   DERBYSHIRE. 

The  river  Mersey  takes  its  sources — for  it  is 
formed  by  the  union  of  several  smaller  streams — in 
the  ranges  of  high  limestone  hills  east  of  Liverpool, 
in  North  Derbyshire.  These  hills  are  an  extension 
of  the  Pennine  range  that  makes  the  backbone  of 

77 


78    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

England,  and  in  Derbyshire  they  rise  to  a  height  of 
nearly  two  thousand  feet,  giving  most  picturesque 
scenery.  The  broad  top  of  the  range  at  its  highest 
j)art  is  called  the  Kindcrscout,  or,  more  familiarl}', 
*'  The  Peak."  The  mountain-top  is  a  vast  moor, 
abounding  in  deep  holes  and  water- pools,  uninhabited 
excepting  by  the  stray  sportsman  or  tourist,  and  dan- 
gerous and  difficult  to  cross.  Yet,  once  mounted  to 
the  top,  there  are  good  views  of  the  wild  scenery  of 
the  Derbyshire  hills,  with  the  villages  nestling  in 
the  glens,  and  of  the  "  Kinder  Fall,"  where  much 
of  the  water  from  the  summit  pours  down  a  cataract 
of  some  five  hundred  feet  height,  while  not  far  away 
is  the  "  Mermaid's  Pool,"  where,  if  you  go  at  the 
midnight  hour  that  ushers  in  Easter  Sunday,  and 
look  steadily  into  the  water,  you  will  see  a  mermaid. 
The  man  who  ventures  upon  that  treacherous  bog- 
land  by  night  certainly  deserves  to  see  the  best  mer- 
maid the  Peak  can  })roduce.  This  limestone  region 
is  a  famous  place.  In  the  sheltered  valley  to  the 
westward  of  the  Kindcrscout  is  the  village  of  Castle- 
ton,  almost  covered  in  by  high  hills  on  all  sides.  It 
was  here  upon  a  bold  cliff  to  the  southward  of  the 
village  that  "  Peveril  of  the  Peak,"  son  of  William 
of  Normandy,  built  his  renowned  castle  at  the  time 
of  the  Norman  Conquest,  of  which  only  the  ruins 
of  the  keep  and  part  of  the  outer  walls  remain. 
Almost  inaccessible,  it  possessed  the  extraordinary 
powers    of   defence    that    were    necessary    in    those 


BESS  OF  HARDWICKE.  79 

troublous  times,  and  here  its  founder  gave  a  grand 
tournament,  to  Avlnch  young  knights  came  from  far 
and  near,  the  successful  knight  of  Lorraine  being 
rewarded  by  his  daughter's  hand.  In  the  time  of 
Edward  III.  this  "Castle  of  the  Peak"  reverted  to 
the  Crown,  but  now  it  is  held  by  the  Duke  of  Devon- 
shire. Under  the  hill  on  which  the  ruins  stand  is 
the  '^  Cavern  of  the  Peak,"  with  a  fine  entrance  in 
a  gloomy  recess  formed  by  a  chasm  in  the  rocks. 
This  entrance  makes  a  Gothic  arch  over  one  thou- 
sand feet  wide,  above  which  the  rock  towers  nearly 
three  hundred  feet,  and  it  is  chequered  with  colored 
stones.  Within  is  a  vast  flat-roofed  cavern,  at  the 
farther  side  being  a  lake  over  which  visitors  are 
ferried  in  a  boat.  Other  caverns  are  within,  the 
entire  cave  extending  nearly  a  half  mile,  a  little 
river,  not  inappropriately  named  the  Styx,  travers- 
ing its  full  length.  There  are  more  and  similar  cav- 
erns in  the  neighborhood. 

BESS    OF    HARDWICKE. 

One  of  the  great  characters  of  the  sixteenth 
century  was  Elizabeth,  Countess  of  Shrewsbury, 
familiarly  known  as  "  Bess  of  Hardwicke,"  where 
she  was  born,  and  who  managed  to  outlive  four 
husbands,  thus  showing  what  success  is  in  store  for 
a  Avoman  of  tact  and  business  talent.  She  was  a 
penniless  bride  at  fourteen,  when  she  married  an 
opulent    gentleman    of    Derbyshire    named    Barley, 


80  ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

who  left  her  at  fifteen  a  wealthy  widow.  At  the  ago 
of  thirty  she  married  another  rich  husband,  8ir 
William  (Cavendish,  the  ancestor  of  the  Dukes  of 
Devonshire,  who  died  in  1557,  leaving  her  again 
a  widow,  but  with  large  estates,  for  she  had  taken 
good  care  to  look  after  the  proper  marriage  settle- 
ments ;  and  in  fact,  even  in  those  early  days,  a 
pretty  good  fortune  was  necessary  to  provide  for 
the  family  of  eight  children  Sir  Williani  left  her. 
She  next  married  Sir  William  Loo,  who  also  had 
large  estates  and  was  the  captain  of  the  king's  guard, 
the  lady's  business  tact  i)rocuring  in  advance  of  the 
wedding  the  settlement  of  these  estates  upon  her- 
self and  her  children — a  hard  condition,  with  which, 
the  historian  tells  us,  "  the  gallant  captain,  who  had 
a  family  by  a  former  marriage,  felt  constrained  to 
comply  or  forego  his  bride."  But  in  time  the  cap- 
tain died,  and  his  estates  all  went  to  the  thrifty  lady, 
to  the  exclusion  of  his  own  family;  and  to  the 
blooming  widow,  thus  made  for  the  third  time, 
there  came  a-courting  the  Karl  of  Shrewsbury  ;  the 
earl  had  numerous  offspring,  and  therefore  could 
hardly  give  liess  all  his  possessions,  like  her  other 
husbands,  but  she  was  clever  enough  to  obtain  her 
object  in  another  way.  As  a  condition  precedent 
to  accepting  the  earl,  she  made  him  marry  two  of 
his  children  to  two  of  hers,  and  after  seeing  these 
two  weddings  solemnized,  the  earl  led  her  to  the 
altar  for  the  fourth  time  at  the  age  of  fifty;   and 


f5ar^wiche  "foall. 


BESS  OF  HARD  WICK  E.  81 

we  are  told  that  all  four  of  these  weddings  were 
actual  "love-matches."  But  she  did  not  get  on 
well  with  the  earl,  whose  correspondence  shows  she 
M'as  a  little  shrewish,  though  in  most  quarrels  she 
managed  to  come  off  ahead,  having  by  that  time 
acquired  experience.  When  the  earl  died  in  1590, 
and  Bess  concluded  not  again  to  attempt  matrimony, 
she  was  immensely  rich  and  was  seized  with  a 
mania  for  building,  which  has  left  to  the  present 
day  three  memorable  houses :  Hardwicke  Hall, 
where  she  lived,  Bolsover  Castle,  and  the  palace 
of  Chatsworth,  which  she  began,  and  on  Avhich  she 
lavished  the  enormous  sum,  for  that  day,  of 
$400,000.  The  legend  runs  that  she  was  told  that 
so  long  as  she  kept  building  her  life  would  be 
spared — an  architect's  ruse  possibly ;  and  Avhen 
finally  she  died  it  was  during  a  period  of  hard 
frost,  when  the  masons  could  not  work. 

Hardwicke  Hall,  near  Mansfield,  which  the  re- 
nowned Bess  has  left  as  one  of  her  monuments,  is 
about  three  hundred  years  old,  and  is  approached  by 
a  noble  avenue  through  a  spacious  park  ;  it  is  still 
among  the  possessions  of  the  Cavendish  family  and 
in  the  Duke  of  Devonshire's  estates.  The  old  hall 
where  Bess  was  born  almost  touches  the  new  one  that 
she  built,  and  which  bears  the  initials  of  the  proud 
and  determined  woman  in  many  places  outside  and 
in.  It  was  here  that  Mary  Queen  of  Scots  was 
held   in    captivitj^  part    of   the  time  that  she  was 

Vol.  I.— 6 


82    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

placed  by  Queen  Elizabeth  in  the  custody  of  the 
Earl  of  Shrewsbury,  and  her  statue  stands  in  the 
hall.  There  are  an  extensive  picture-gallery  con- 
taining many  historical  portraits,  and  also  fine  state- 
apartments.  The  mansion  is  a  lofty  oblong  stone 
structure,  with  tall  square  towers  at  each  comer, 
the  architecture  being  one  of  the  best  specimens  of 
the  Elizabethan  Period ;  on  the  side,  as  viewed  from 
the  park,  the  hall  seems  all  windows,  which  accounts 
for  the  saying  of  that  neighborhood  : 

"Hardwicke  Hall,  more  glass  than  wall." 

The  ruins  of  the  old  hall,  almost  overgrown  with 
ivy,  are  picturesque,  but  from  everywhere  on  the 
ancient  or  on  the  modern  hall  there  peer  out  the 
initials  *'  E.  S.,"  with  which  the  prudent  Bess  was 
so  careful  to  mark  all  her  possessions. 

BOLSOVER   CASTLE. 

The  noted  Bolsover  Castle,  which  Bess  also  built, 
though  her  son  finisiied  it  after  her  death,  stands  in 
a  magnificent  position  on  a  high  plateau  not  far 
from  Chesterfield,  overlooking  a  wide  expanse  of 
Derbyshire.  The  present  castle  replaced  an  ancient 
structure  that  had  fallen  into  ruin,  and  was  supposed 
to  have  been  built  by  "  Peveril  of  the  Peak  ;"  it 
was  fortified  during  King  John's  time,  and  traces 
of  the  fortifications  still  remain  ;  it  was  repeatedly 
besieged  and  taken  by  assault.     The  present  build- 


BOLSOVER  CASTLE.  83 

ing  is  a  square  and  loftj  mansion  of  castellated 
appearance,  witli  towers  at  the  corners  built  of 
brown  stone ;  in  it  the  Earl  of  Newcastle,  who 
subsequently  inherited  it,  spent  on  one  occasion 
$75,000  in  entertaining  King  Charles  I.,  the  entire 
country  round  being  invited  to  attend  the  king : 
Ben  Jonson  performed  a  play  for  his  amusement. 
Lord  Clarendon  speaks  of  the  occasion  as  "  such  an 
excess  of  feasting  as  had  scarce  ever  been  known 
in  England  before."  It  now  belongs  to  the  Duke 
of  Portland,  and  has  fallen  into  partial  decay, 
with  trees  growing  in  some  of  the  deserted  apart- 
ments and  ivy  creeping  along  the  Avails.  Visitors 
describe  it  as  a  ghostly  house,  with  long  vaulted 
passages,  subterranean  chambers,  dungeon-like  holes 
in  the  towers,  and  mysterious  spaces  beneath  the 
vaults  whence  come  weird  noises.  When  Mr.  Jen- 
nings visited  Bolsover  he  described  it  as  like  a 
haunted  house,  and  after  examining  the  apartments, 
in  which  most  things  seemed  going  to  decay,  he 
went  down  stairs,  guided  by  an  old  woman,  to  the 
cellars  and  passages  that  are  said  to  be  the  remains 
of  the  original  Norman  castle.  A  chamber  with  a 
high  vaulted  roof  was  used  as  a  kitchen,  and  an 
ancient  stone  passage  connected  it  with  a  crypt ; 
beneath  this,  she  told  him,  there  was  a  church, 
never  opened  since  the  days  of  Peveril.  Tiieir 
voices  had  a  hollow  sound,  and  their  footsteps  awak- 
ened echoes  as  if  from  a  large  empty  space  beneath  ; 


84  ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

llic  servants,  she  said,  were  afraid  to  come  down 
Avhere  they  were,  excepting  hy  twos  and  threes, 
and  she  added :  '*  ^lany  people  have  seen  things 
here  besides  me ;  something  bad  has  been  done  here, 
sir,  and  when  they  open  tliat  church  below  they'll 
find  it  out.  Just  wliere  you  stand  by  that  door  I 
have  several  times  seen  a  lady  and  gentleman — 
only  for  a  moment  or  two,  for  they  come  like  a 
flash ;  when  I  have  been  sitting  in  the  kitchen,  not 
thinking  of  any  such  thing,  they  stood  there — the 
gentleman  with  ruffles  on,  the  lady  with  a  scarf  round 
her  waist ;  I  never  believed  in  ghosts,  but  I  have 
seen  them.  I  am  used  to  it  now,  and  don't  mind  it ; 
but  we  do  not  like  the  noises,  because  they  disturb 
us.  Not  long  ago  my  husband,  who  comes  here  at 
night,  and  I,  could  not  sleep  at  all,  and  we  thought 
at  last  that  somebody  had  got  shut  up  in  the  castle, 
for  some  children  had  been  here  that  day  ;  so  we 
lit  a  candle  and  went  all  over  it,  but  there  Avas 
nothing,  only  the  noises  following  us,  and  keeping 
on  worse  than  ever  after  we  left  the  rooms,  though 
they  stopped  while  we  were  in  them."  The  old 
woman's  tale  shows  the  atmosphere  there  is  about 
this  sombre  and  ghostly  castle  of  Bolsover. 

THE   WYE    AND    THE    DERWENT. 

These  two  noted  rivers  take  their  rise  in  the 
Derbyshire  hills,  and,  coming  together  at  Rowsley 
near  the  pretty  Peacock  Inn,  flow  down  to  the  sea, 


THE  WYE  AND  THE  DEKWENT.  85 

through  the  valleys  of  the  ^Yye,  the  Trent,  and 
the  Hiunber.  Rising  in  the  limestone  hills  to  the 
north  of  Buxton,  the  Wye  flows  past  that  celebrated 
bath,  where  the  Romans  first  set  the  example  of 
seeking  its  healing  waters,  both  hot  and  cold  springs 
gushing  from  the  rocks  in  close  proximity.  It 
stands  nine  hundred  feet  above  the  sea,  its  nucleus, 
"  The  Crescent,"  having  been  built  by  the  Duke  of 
Devonshire  ;  and  the  miraculous  cures  wrought  by 
St.  Mary's  Well  are  noted  by  Charles  Cotton  among 
the  Wonders  of  the  PeaJc.  From  Buxton  the  Wye 
follows  a  romantic  glen  to  BakewcU,  the  winding 
valley  being  availed  of,  by  frequent  tunnels,  viaducts, 
and  embankments,  as  a  route  for  the  Midland  Rail- 
way. In  this  romantic  glen  is  the  remarkable  lime- 
stone crag  known  as  Chee  Tor,  where  the  curving 
valley  contracts  into  a  narrow  gorge.  The  gray 
limestone  cliffs  are  in  many  places  overgrown  with 
ivy,  while  trees  find  rooting-places  in  their  fissures. 
Tributary  brooks  fall  into  the  Wye,  all  flowing 
through  miniature  dales  that  disclose  successive 
beauties,  and  then  at  a  point  where  the  limestone 
hills  recede  from  the  river,  expanding  the  valley, 
Bakewell  is  reached.  Here  are  also  mineral  springs, 
but  the  most  important  place  in  the  toAvn  is  the  parish 
church  parts,  of  which  are  seven  hundred  years  old. 
It  is  a  picturesque  building,  cruciform,  with  a  spire, 
and  is  rich  in  sepulchral  remains,  containing  the  an- 
cestors of  the  Duke  of  Rutland — who  owns  the  town 


86    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

—  in  tlie  tombs  of  a  long  line  of  Vemons  and  Man- 
ners. In  the  churchyard  are  several  curious  epi- 
taphs, among  them  that  of  John  Dale  and  his  two 
wives,  the  inscription  concluding, 

"  A  period's  come  to  all  their  toylsome  lives; 
The  good  man's  quiet— still  are  both  his  wives." 

In  this  churchyard  is  also  the  well-known  epitaph 
often  quoted : 

"  Beneath  a  sleeping  infant  lies,  to  earth  whose  body  lent. 
More  glorious  shall  hereafter  rise,  tho'  not  more  innocent. 
When  the  archangel's  trump  shall  blow,  and  souls  to  bodies  join, 
Millions  will  wish  their  lives  below  had  been  as  short  as  tliine." 

HADDOX    HALL. 

Three  miles  below  Bakewell,  near  tlie  Wye,  is 
one  of  the  most  famous  old  mansions  of  England — 
Iladdon  Hall.  Tliis  ancient  baronial  home,  with  its 
series  of  houses,  its  courtyards,  towers,  embattled 
walls,  and  gardens,  stands  on  the  side  of  a  hill  slop- 
ing down  to  tlie  Wye,  while  the  railway  has  pierced 
a  tunnel  through  the  hill  almost  underneath  the 
structure.  The  buildings  surround  two  courtyards 
paved  with  large  stones,  and  cover  a  space  of  nearly 
three  lumdred  feet  square.  Outside  tlie  arched  en- 
trance-gate to  the  first  courtyard  is  a  low  thatched 
cottage  used  as  a  porter's  lodge.  Iladdon  is  main- 
tained, not  as  a  residence,  but  to  give  as  perfect  an 
idea  as  possible   of  a  baronial  hall  of   the  Middle 


HADDON  HALL.  87 

Ages.  To  get  to  tlie  entrance  tlie  visitor  toils  up  a 
rather  steep  hill,  and  on  the  way  passes  two  remark- 
able yew  trees,  cut  to  represent  the  crests  of  the  two 
families  whose  union  by  a  romantic  marriage  is  one 
of  the  traditions  of  this  famous  place.  One  yew 
represents  the  peacock  of  Manners,  the  present  ducal 
house  of  Rutland,  and  the  other  the  boar's  head  of 
Vernon.  Parts  of  this  house,  like  so  many  struct- 
ures in  the  neighborhood,  were  built  in  the  time  of 
"  Peveril  of  the  Peak,"  and  its  great  hall  was  the 
"  Martindale  Hall "  of  Scott's  novel,  thus  coming 
down  to  us  through  eight  centuries,  and  nearly  all 
the  buildings  are  at  least  four  hundred  years  old. 

Entering  the  gateway,  the  porter's  guard-room  is 
seen  on  the  right  hand,  with  the  ancient  '^  peephole  " 
throuirh  which  he  scanned  visitors  before  admittinor 
them.  Mounting  the  steps  to  the  tirst  courtyard, 
which  is  on  a  lower  level  tlian  the  other,  the  chapel 
and  the  hall  are  seen  on  either  hand,  while  in  front 
are  the  steps  leading  to  the  state-apartments.  The 
buildings  are  not  lofty,  but  there  are  second-floor 
rooms  in  almost  all  parts,  which  were  occupied  by 
the  household.  There  is  an  extensive  ball-room, 
while  the  Eagle  Tower  rises  at  one  corner  of  the 
court.  Many  relics  of  the  olden  time  are  preserved 
in  these  apartments.  The  ancient  cliapcl  is  entered 
by  an  arched  doorway  from  the  court,  and  consists 
of  a  nave,  chancel,  and  side  aisle,  with  an  antique 
Norman  font  and  a  large  high-back  pew  used  by  the 


88   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

family.  After  passing  the  court,  tlie  banquct-hall  is 
entered,  tliirty-five  by  twenty-five  feet,  and  rising  to 
the  full  heiglit  of  the  building.  In  one  of  the  door- 
ways is  a  bracket  to  which  an  iron  ring  is  attached, 
wliich  was  used,  as  we  are  told,  "  to  enforce  the  laws 
of  conviviality."  When  a  guest  failed  to  drink  his 
allowance  of  wine  he  was  suspended  by  the  wrist  to 
this  ring,  and  the  liquor  he  failed  to  pour  down  his 
throat  was  poured  into  his  sleeve.  A  tall  screen  at 
the  end  of  the  room  formed  the  front  of  a  gallery, 
where  on  great  occasions  minstrels  discoursed  sweet 
music,  while  at  the  opposite  end  the  lord  and  his 
honored  guests  sat  on  a  raised  dais.  Here  still  stands 
the  old  table,  while  behind  the  dais  a  fiight  of  stairs 
leads  up  to  the  state-apartments.  Stags'  heads  and 
antlers  of  great  age  are  on  the  walls.  Another  door 
opens  out  of  the  banquet-hall  into  the  dining-room, 
the  end  of  which  is  entirely  taken  up  with  a  fine 
Gothic  window  displaying  the  Vernon  arms  and 
quarterings.  This  room  is  elaborately  wainscoted. 
The  royal  arms  are  inscribed  over  the  fireplace,  and 
below  them  is  the  Vernon  motto  carved  in  Gothic 
letters : 

"Drede  God  and  Honour  the  Kyng." 

An  exquisite  oriel  window  looks  out  from  this  room 
over  the  woods  and  grounds  of  Haddon,  the  recess 
bearing  on  one  of  its  panels  the  head  of  Will  Somers, 
who  was  Henry  VHI.'s  jester.     The  drawing-room,,  . 


HADDON  HALL.  89 

which  is  over  the  dining-room,  is  hung  with  old 
tapestry,  above  which  is  a  frieze  of  ornamental 
mouldings.  A  pretty  recessed  Avindow  also  gives 
from  this  room  a  delightful  view  over  the  grounds. 

The  gem  of  Haddon  is  the  long  gallery  or.  ball- 
room, which  extends  over  one  hundred  feet  along 
one  side  of  the  inner  court :  the  semicircular  wooden 
steps  leading  to  this  apartment  are  said  to  have  been 
cut  from  a  single  tree  that  grew  in  the  park.  The 
gallery  is  wainscoted  in  oak  in  semicircular  arched 
panels,  alternately  large  and  small,  surmounted  by  a 
frieze  and  a  turreted  and  battlemented  cornice.  The 
ceiling  is  elaborately  carved  in  geometric  patterns, 
and  the  tracery  contains  the  alternating  arms  and 
crests  of  Vernon  and  Manners  ;  the  remains  are  still 
visible  of  the  rich  gilding  and  painting  of  this  ceil- 
ing. In  the  anteroom  paintings  are  hung,  and  from 
it  a  strongly-barred  door  opens  upon  a  flight  of  stone  • 
steps  leading  down  to  the  terrace  and  garden :  this  is 
"  Dorothy  Vernon's  Door ;"  and  across  the  garden 
another  flight  of  steps  leading  to  the  terrace  is  known 
as  "  Dorothy  Vernon's  Steps."  It  was  the  gentle 
maiden's  flight  through  this  door  and  up  these  steps 
to  elope  with  John  Manners  that  carried  the  old 
house  and  all  its  broad  lands  into  the  possession  of 
the  family  now  owning  it.  The  state  bedroom  is 
hung  with  Gobelin  tapestry  illustrating  Esop's  fables; 
tlic  state  bed  is  fourteen  feet  high,  and  furnished  in 
green  silk  velvet  and  white  satin,  embroidered  by 


90   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

needlework,  and  its  last  occupant  was  George  IV. 
The  kitchen  and  range  of  domestic  offices  are  exten- 
sive, and  show  the  marvellous  amount  of  cooking  that 
was  carried  on  in  the  hospitable  days  of  Haddon  ;  the 
kitciicn  has  a  ceiling  supported  by  massive  beams 
and  a  solid  oak  column  in  the  centre  ;  there  are  two 
huge  fireplaces,  scores  of  stoves,  spits,  pothooks, 
and  hangers,  large  chopping-blocks,  dressers,  and 
tables,  with  attendant  bakehouses,  ovens,  pantries, 
and  larders ;  among  the  relics  is  an  enormous  salt- 
ing-trough hollowed  out  of  one  immense  block  of 
wood.  Beyond  the  garden  or  lawn,  one  himdred  and 
twenty  feet  square,  extends  the  terrace,  planted  with 
ancient  yews,  whose  gnarled  roots  intertwine  with 
and  displace  the  stones.  The  terrace  extends  the 
full  width  of  the  outer  or  upper  garden,  and  gives  a 
charming  view  of  the  southern  front  of  the  hall. 

^lore  romance  hangs  about  Haddon  than  probably 
any  other  old  baronial  hall  in  England,  and  it  has 
therefore  been  for  years  an  endless  source  of  inspira- 
tion for  poets,  artists,  and  novelists.  Mrs.  Radcliffe 
liere  laid  some  of  the  scenes  of  the  Mysteries  of 
UdoJpho.  Bennett's  "King  of  the  Peak"  was  Sir 
(icorge  Vernon,  the  hospitable  owner  of  Iladdon. 
Scott  has  written  of  it,  a  host  of  artists  have  painted 
its  most  attractive  features,  and  many  a  poet  has 
sung  of  the 

"  Hall  of  wassail  wliicli  has  nmg 
To  the  unquestioned  baron's  jest : 


state  JSebroom,  t)a&Oon  t)aU. 


HADDON  HALL.  91 

Dim  old  chapel,  where  were  hung 

Offerings  of  the  o'erfrauglit  breast ; 
Moss-clad  terrace,  strangely  still, 

Broken  shaft  and  crumbling  frieze — 
Still  as  lips  that  used  to  fill 

With  bugle-blasts  the  morning  breeze." 

But,  unlike  most  baronial  strongholds,  the  history 
of  Haddon  tells  only  the  romance  of  peace,  love,  and 
hospitality.  It  came  by  marriage  into  the  possession 
of  the  Vernons  soon  after  the  Conquest ;  one  of  them, 
Sir  Henry  Vernon  of  Haddon,  was  appointed  gover- 
nor of  Prince  Arthur  by  Henry  VII.  His  grandson. 
Sir  George  Vernon,  lived  in  such  princely  magnifi- 
cence at  Haddon  that  he  was  known  as  the  "  King 
of  the  Peak  ;"  his  initials,  "  G.  V.,"  are  carved  in 
the  banquet-hall.  Around  his  youngest  daughter, 
Dorothy,  gathers  the  chief  halo  of  romance.  The 
story  in  brief  is,  that  her  elder  sister,  being  the  af- 
fianced bride  of  the  son  of  the  Earl  of  Derby,  was 
petted  and  made  much  of,  while  Dorothy,  at  sweet 
sixteen,  was  kept  in  the  background.  She  formed 
an  attachment  for  John  Manners,  son  of  the  Earl  of 
Rutland,  but  this  her  family  violently  opposed,  keep- 
ing her  almost  a  prisoner :  her  lover,  disguised  as  a 
forester,  lurked  for  weeks  in  the  woods  around  Haddon, 
obtaining  occasionally  a  stolen  interview.  At  length 
on  a  festal  night,  when  the  ball-room  was  filled  wuth 
guests  summoned  to  celebrate  the  approaching  nuptials 
of  the  elder  sister,  and  every  one  was  so  wrapped 
in  enjoyment  that  there  was  no  time  to  watch  Do- 


92   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVK 

rothy,  the  maiden,  unobserved,  stole  out  of  the  ball- 
room into  the  anteroom,  and  through  the  door, 
across  the  garden,  and  up  the  steps  to  the  terrace, 
where  her  lover  had  made  a  signal  that  he  was  wait- 
ing. In  a  moment  she  was  in  his  arms,  and  rode 
away  with  him  in  the  moonlight  all  night,  across  the 
hills  of  Derbyshire,  and  into  Leicestershire,  where 
they  were  married  next  morning.  It  was  the  old 
story — an  elopement,  a  grand  row,  and  then  all  was 
forgiven.  Sir  George  Vernon  had  no  sons,  and  his 
daughters  divided  his  estate,  Iladdon  going  to  Do- 
rothy, who  thus  by  her  elopement  carried  the  famous 
hall  over  to  the  family  of  Manners.  Dorothy  died 
in  1584,  leaving  four  children,  the  oldest,  Sir  George 
Manners,  living  at  Iladdon  and  maintaining  its  hospit- 
able reputation.  Dying  in  1G79,  his  son,  John  Man- 
ners, who  was  the  ninth  Earl  of  Rutland,  became  the 
master  of  Iladdon,  and  "kept  up  the  good  old  man- 
sion at  a  bountiful  rate,"  as  the  chronicler  tells  us. 
He  kept  one  hundred  and  forty  servants,  and  had  so 
many  retainers  and  guests  that  every  day  the  tables 
in  the  old  banquet-hall  were  spread  as  at  a  Christmas 
feast.  The  earl  was  raised  to  the  rank  of  duke,  and 
his  son  John,  Duke  of  Rutland,  known  as  the  "  Old 
Man  of  the  Hill,"  died  in  1779,  since  which  time  the 
family  have  not  used  the  hall  as  a  place  of  residence, 
having  gone  to  Belvoir  in  Leicestershire.  Its  pres- 
ent owner  is  the  seventh  Duke  of  Rutland,  John 
Manners,  and  the  descendant  of  the  famous  Dorothy. 


CHATSWORTH.  93 

There  are  few  places,  even  in  England,  that  have  the 
fame  of  Haddon,  and  it  is  one  of  the  chief  spots 
sought  out  by  the  tourist.  The  duke  maintains  it 
just  as  it  existed  centuries  ago,  with  the  old  furniture 
and  utensils,  so  as  to  reproduce  as  faithfully  as  pos- 
sible the  English  baronial  hall  of  his  ancestors.  Do- 
rothy and  her  husband  have  their  monument  in  Bake- 
well  Church. 

CHATSWORTH. 

Below  Haddon  Hall  the  valley  of  the  Wye  broadens, 
with  yet  richer  scenery,  as  it  approaches  the  conflu- 
ence of  the  Wye  and  Derwent  at  Rowsley,  where 
the  quaint  old  Peacock  Inn,  which  was  the  manor- 
house  of  Haddon,  bears  over  the  door  the  date  1653, 
and  the  crest  of  the  ducal  House  of  Rutland,  a  pea- 
cock with  tail  displayed.  Ascending  for  a  short 
distance  the  valley  of  the  Derwent,  which  washes 
the  bases  of  the  steep  limestone  hills,  we  come  to 
Chatsworth.  In  sharp  contrast  with  the  ancient 
glories  of  Haddon  is  this  modern  ducal  palace,  for 
whose  magnificence  Bess  of  Hardwicke  laid  the 
foundation.  This  '^Palace  of  the  Peak"  stands  in  a 
park  covering  over  two  thousand  acres  ;  the  Derwent 
flows  in  front,  over  which  the  road  to  the  palace  is 
carried  by  a  fine  bridge.  From  the  river  a  lawn 
gently  slopes  upward  to  the  buildings,  and  the  wooded 
hill  which  rises  sharply  behind  them  is  surmounted 
by  a  hunting-tower,  embosomed  in  trees.     A  herd 


94   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE   AND  DESCRIITIVE. 

of  at  least  a  thousand  deer  roam  at  will  over  tlie 
park,  and  have  become  very  tame.  Chatsworth  is  a 
brownish-yellow  building,  square  and  flat-topped, 
with  a  modern  and  more  ornamental  wing.  Its  front 
extends  5G0  feet,  and  in  parts  it  is  of  that  depth. 
The  estate  was  bought  in  the  sixteenth  century  by 
Sir  William  (Javendish,  who  built  the  original  house, 
a  quadrangular  building  with  turrets,  which  was 
greatly  extended  by  his  wife.  It  was  used  as  a  fort- 
ress in  the  Civil  Wars,  and  Avas  considerably  bat- 
tered. The  first  Duke  of  Devonshire  about  the  year 
1700  rebuilt  the  mansion,  employing  the  chief  archi- 
tects, artists,  designers,  and  wood-carvers  of  his  time, 
among  them  Sir  Christopher  Wren.  In  the  grounds, 
not  far  from  the  bridge  over  the  Derwent,  is  the 
"  Bower  of  Mary  Queen  of  Scots."  There  is  a 
small,  clear  lake  almost  concealed  by  foliage,  in  the 
centre  of  which  is  a  tower,  and  on  the  top  a  grass- 
grown  garden,  where  are  also  several  fine  trees. 
Here,  under  guard,  the  captive  was  permitted  to  take 
the  air.  In  those  days  she  looked  out  upon  a  broad 
expanse  of  woods  and  moorland  ;  now  all  around  has 
been  converted  into  gardens  and  a  park.  Entering 
the  house  through  a  magnificent  gateway,  the  visitor 
is  taken  into  the  entrance-hall,  whore  the  frescoes 
represent  the  life  and  death  of  Julius  Caesar;  then 
up  the  grand  staircase  of  amethyst  and  variegated 
alabaster  guarded  by  richly-gilded  balustrades.  The 
gorgeously-embellished  chapel    is    wainscoted    with 


Cbatawortb. 


CHATSWORTH.  95 

cedar,  and  has  a  sculptured  altar  made  of  Derbyshire 
marbles.  The  beautiful  drawing-room  opens  into  a 
series  of  state-apartments  lined  with  choice  woods 
and  hung  with  Gobelin  tapestries  representing  the 
cartoons  of  Raphael.  Magnificent  carvings  and  rare 
paintings  adorn  the  Avails,  while  the  richest  decora- 
tions are  everywhere  displayed.  On  the  door  of 
the  antechamber  is  a  quill  pen  so  finely  carved 
that  it  almost  repi'oduces  the  real  feather.  In  the 
Scarlet  Room  are  the  bed  on  which  George  II.  died 
and  the  chairs  and  footstools  used  at  the  coronation 
of  George  III.  On  the  north  side  of  the  house  is 
another  stairway  of  oak,  also  richly  gilded.  In  the 
apartments  replacing  those  where  Mary  Queen  of 
Scots  lived  are  her  bed-hangings  and  tapestries. 
Thei'e  is  an  extensive  library  with  many  rare  books 
and  manuscripts,  and  a  sculpture-gallery  lined  with 
Devonshire  marble,  containing  many  statues  and 
busts,  and  also  two  recumbent  lions,  each  nine  feet 
long  and  four  feet  high  and  weighing  four  tons,  and 
carved  out  of  a  solid  block  of  marble.  The  final 
enlargement  of  Chatsworth  was  completed  about 
sixty-five  years  ago,  when  Queen  Victoria  made  a 
state  visit  and  was  given  a  magnificent  reception  by 
the  Duke  of  Devonshire. 

The  gardens  at  Chatsworth  are  as  noted  as  the 
house,  and  are  to  many  minds  the  gem  of  the  estate. 
They  cover  one  hundred  and  twenty-two  acres,  and 
arc  so  arranged  as  to  make  a  beautiful  view  out  of 


96    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

every  window  of  the  palace.  All  things  arc  pro- 
vided tiiat  can  add  to  rural  beauty — fountains, 
cascades,  running  streams,  lakes,  rockeries,  orange- 
groves,  hot-houses,  woods,  sylvan  dells — and  no 
labor  or  expense  is  spared  to  enhance  the  attractions 
of  trees,  flowers,  and  shrubbery.  From  a  stone 
temple,  whicii  it  completely  covers,  the  great 
cascade  flows  down  among  dolphins,  sea-lions,  and 
nymphs,  until  it  disappears  among  the  rocks  and 
seeks  an  underground  outlet  into  the  Derwent. 
Enormous  stones  weighing  several  tons  are  nicely 
balanced,  so  as  to  rock  at  the  touch  or  swing  open 
for  gates.  Others  overhang  the  paths  as  if  a  gust 
of  wind  might  blow  them  down.  In  honor  of  the 
visit  of  the  Czar  Nicholas  in  1844  the  great 
"Emperor  Fountain"  was  constructed,  which  throws 
a  cohunn  of  water  to  an  immense  height.  The 
grounds  are  filled  Avith  trees  planted  by  kings, 
queens,  and  great  people  on  their  visits  to  the 
palace.  The  finest  of  all  the  trees  is  a  noble 
Spanish  chestnut  of  sixteen  feet  girth.  Weeping 
willows  do  not  grow  at  Chatsworth,  bat  they  have 
provided  one  in  the  form  of  a  metal  tree,  contrived 
so  as  to  discharge  a  deluge  of  rain-drops  from  its 
metallic  leaves  and  boughs  when  a  secret  spring  is 
touched.  The  glory  of  the  Chatsworth  gardens, 
however,  is  the  conservatory,  a  beautiful  structure 
of  glass  and  iron  covering  nearly  an  acre,  the  arched 
roof  in  the  centre  rising  to  a  height  of  sixty-seven 


MATLOCK  AND  DOVEDALK  97 

feet.  In  this  famous  hot-house  are  the  rarest  palms 
and  tropical  plants.  It  was  designed  by  Sir  Joseph 
Paxton,  the  duke's  head-gardener,  and,  enlarging 
the  design,  Paxton  constructed  in  the  same  way  the 
London  Crystal  Palace  for  the  Exhibition  of  1851, 
for  which  service  he  Avas  knighted.  Besides  this 
rare  collection  of  hot-house  plants,  the  famous  Vic- 
toria Regia  is  in  a  special  house  at  Chatsworth, 
growing  in  a  tank  thirty -four  feet  in  diameter,  the 
water  being  maintained  at  the  proper  temperature 
and  kept  constantly  in  motion  as  a  running  stream. 
The  seed  for  this  celebrated  plant  was  brought  from 
Guiana,  and  it  first  bloomed  here  in  1849.  Some 
fifty  persons  are  employed  in  the  gardens  and 
grounds,  besides  the  servnnts  in  the  buildings,  show- 
ing the  retinue  necessary  to  maintain  this  great 
show-palace,  the  Duke  of  Devonshire  seldom  using 
it  as  a  residence. 

MATLOCK   AND    DOVEDALE. 

Retracing  the  Derwent  to  the  Wye  again,  the 
valley  of  the  latter  is  open  below  for  several  miles, 
and  then  as  Matlock  is  approached  a  mass  of  lime- 
stone stretching  across  the  valley  seems  to  bar  all 
egress,  and  the  river  plunges  through  a  narrow  glen. 
The  bold  gray  crags  of  the  High  Tor  rise  steeply  on 
the  left  hand,  and  the  gorge  not  being  wide  enough 
for  both  river  and  railway,  the  latter  pierces  a 
tunnel  through  the  High  Tor.  The  river  bends 
Vol.  L— 7 


98    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

sliarply  to  the  riglit,  and  tlie  village  makes  a  long 
street  along  the  bank  and  rises  in  terraces  up  the 
steep  hill  behind.  These  are  the  *'  Heights  of 
Abraham,"  while  the  pretty  slope  below  the  High 
Tor  is  the  ''  Lovers'  Walk."  Matlock  is  beautifully 
situated,  and  its  springs  arc  in  repute,  while  the 
caves  in  the  neighborhood  give  plenty  of  oppor- 
tunity for  that  kind  of  exploration.  The  Derby- 
shire marbles  are  quarried  all  about,  and  mosaic 
manufacture  is  carried  on.  It  was  near  Matlock 
that  Arkwright  first  set  up  his  cotton-spinning 
machine,  and  when  fortune  and  fame  had  made 
him  Sir  Richard  Arkwright  he  built  Willersley 
Castle  for  his  home,  on  the  banks  of  the  Derwent. 
The  valley  of  the  little  river  Dove  also  presents 
some  tine  scenery,  especially  in  the  fantastic  shapes 
of  its  rocks.  The  river  runs  between  steep  hills 
fringed  with  ash  and  oak  and  hawthorn,  and  Dove- 
dale  can  be  pursued  for  miles  with  interest.  One 
of  its  famous  resorts  is  the  old  and  comfortable 
Izaak  Walton  Inn,  sacred  to  anglers.  In  Dovedale 
are  the  rocks  called  the  Twelve  Apostles,  the  Tis- 
sington  Spires,  the  Pickering  Tor,  the  caverns 
known  as  the  Dove  Holes,  and  Reynard's  Hall, 
while  the  entire  stream  is  full  of  memories  of  those 
celebrated  anglers  of  two  centuries  ago,  Walton  and 
his  friend  Cotton. 


Xion'0  jface  IRoch,  S)ovc6alc. 


BEAUCniEF  ABBEY.  99 

BEAUCHIEF   ABBEY. 

Before  leaving  Derbyshire  the  ruin  of  Beauchief 
Abbey,  which  gave  the  name  of  Abbey  Dale  to  one 
of  the  pleasant  vales  on  the  eastern  border  of  the 
county,  must  not  be  forgotten.  It  was  built  seven 
hundred  years  ago,  and  there  remains  but  a  single 
fragment  of  this  famous  religious  house,  the  arch  of 
the  great  east  Avindow.  Singularly  enough,  under 
the  same  roof  with  the  abbey  was  built  an  inn,  and 
at  a  short  distance  there  is  a  hermitage :  the  hermit's 
cave  is  scooped  out  of  a  rock  elevated  above  the 
valley  and  overhung  with  foliage.  We  are  told  that 
a  pious  baker  lived  in  the  town  of  Derby  who  was 
noted  for  his  exemplary  life :  the  Virgin  Mary,  as  a 
proof  of  his  faith,  required  him  to  relinquish  all  his 
worldly  goods  and  go  to  Deepdale  and  lead  a  solitary 
life  in  Christ's  service.  He  did  as  he  was  told,  de- 
parted from  Derby,  but  had  no  idea  where  he  was  to 
go ;  directing  his  footsteps  towards  the  east,  he 
passed  through  a  village,  and  heard  a  woman  in- 
struct a  girl  to  drive  some  calves  to  Deepdale.  Re- 
garding this  as  an  interposition  of  Providence,  the 
baker,  encouraged,  asked  where  was  Deepdale ;  the 
woman  told  the  girl  to  show  him.  Arrived  there,  he 
found  it  marshy  land,  distant  from  any  human 
habitation  ;  but,  seeking  a  rising  ground,  he  cut  a 
small  dwelling  in  a  rock  under  the  side  of  a  hill, 
built  an  altar,  and  there  spent  day  and  night  in  the 


100   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Divine  service,  with  hunger  and  cold,  thirst  and 
want.  Now,  it  happened  that  a  person  of  great 
consequence  owned  this  land — Ralph,  the  son  of 
Geremund — and  coming  to  the  woods  to  hunt,  he 
saw  smoke  rising  from  the  hermit's  cave,  and  was 
filled  with  astonishment  that  any  one  should  have 
dared  to  establisli  a  dwelling  there  without  his  per- 
mission. Going  to  the  place,  he  found  the  hermit' 
clothed  in  old  rags  and  skins,  and,  inquiring  about 
his  case,  Ralph's  anger  changed  to  pitj.  To  show 
his  compassion,  he  granted  the  hermit  the  ground 
where  the  hermitage  stood,  and  also  for  his  support 
the  tithe  of  a  mill  not  far  away.  The  tradition 
further  relates  "  that  the  old  Enemy  of  the  human 
race  "  then  endeavored  to  make  the  hermit  dissatis- 
fied with  his  condition,  but  *'  he  resolutely  endured 
all  its  calamities,"  and  ultimately  he  built  a  cottage 
and  oratory,  and  ended  his  days  in  the  service  of 
God.  After  his  death,  Ralph's  daughter  prevailed 
upon  her  husband  to  dedicate  Deepdale  to  religious 
uses,  and  he  inviting  the  canons,  they  built  the 
abbey.  We  are  told  in  Hewitt's  Forest  Minstrel 
of  the  wonder  caused  by  the  construction  of  the 
abbey,  and  also  how  in  later  years  the  monks  became 
corrupted  by  prosperity.  A  place  is  shown  to 
visitors  where  the  wall  between  the  chapel  and  the 
inn  gave  way  to  the  thirsty  zeal  of  the  monks,  and 
through  an  opening  their  favorite  liquor  was 
handed.     The  Forest  Minstrel  tells  us  they 


STAFFORD  AND  TRENTHAM.  101 

"Forsook  missal  and  mass 
To  chant  o'er  a  bottle  or  shrive  a  lass  ; 
No  matins  bell  called  them  up  in  the  mom, 
But  the  yell  of  the  hounds  and  sound  of  the  horn; 
No  penance  the  monk  in  his  cell  could  stay 
But  a  broken  leg  or  a  rainy  day : 
The  pilgrim  that  came  to  the  abbey-door, 
AVith  the  feet  of  the  fallow-deer  found  it  nailed  o'er; 
The  pilgrim  that  into  the  kitchen  was  led, 
On  Sir  Gilbert's  venison  there  was  fed, 
And  saw  skins  and  antlere  hang  o'er  his  head." 


STAFFORD   AND    TRENTIIAM. 

The  rivers  which  drain  tlie  limestone  hills  of 
Derbyshire  unite  to  form  the  Trent,  and  this  stream, 
after  a  winding  and  picturesque  course  through  Mid- 
land England  towards  the  eastward,  flows  into  the 
Humber,  and  ultimately  into  the  North  Sea.  Its 
first  course  after  leaving  Derby  is  through  Stafford- 
shire, one  of  the  great  manufacturing  counties  of 
England,  celebrated  for  its  potteries,  whose  prod- 
uct Josiah  Wedgewood  so  greatly  improved.  The 
county-seat  is  Stafford,  on  the  Sow  River,  not  far 
from  the  Trent  Valley,  and  on  a  high  hill  south-Avest 
of  the  town  are  the  remains  of  the  castle  of  the 
Barons  of  Stafford,  originally  built  a  thousand  years 
ago  by  the  Saxons  to  keep  the  Danes  in  check. 
This  castle  was  destroyed  and  rebuilt  by  William 
the  Conqueror;  again  destroyed  and  again  rebuilt 
by  Ralph  de  Stafford  in  Edward  III.'s  reign.  In  the 
Civil  Wars  this  castle  was  one  of  the  last  strong- 


102   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

holds  of  King  Charles  I.,  but  it  was  ultimately  taken 
by  Cromwell's  troops  and  demolished,  excepting  the 
keep ;  a  massive  castellated  building  of  modern 
construction  now  occupies  its  place.  The  river 
Trent,  in  its  winding  course,  forms  near  Trentham  a 
fine  lake,  and  the  beautiful  neighborhood  has  been 
availed  of  for  the  establishment  of  the  splendid  resi- 
dence of  the  Duke  of  Sutherland,  about  a  mile  west 
of  the  village,  and  known  as  Trentham  Hall.  The 
park  is  extensive,  the  gardens  are  laid  out  around 
the  lake,  and  the  noble  Italian  building,  which  is  of 
modern  construction,  has  a  fine  campanile  tower  one 
hundred  feet  high,  and  occupies  a  superb  situation. 
The  old  church  makes  j)art  of  Trentham  Hall,  and 
contains  monuments  of  the  duke's  family  and  ances- 
tors, the  Leveson-Gowers,  whose  extensive  estates 
cover  a  wide  domain  in  Staffordshire.  Trentham, 
which  is  in  the  pottery  district  and  not  far  from 
Newcastle-under-Lyme,  was  originally  a  monastery, 
founded  by  St.  Werburgh,  niece  of  /Ethelred.  She 
was  one  of  the  most  famous  of  the  Anglo-Saxon 
saints,  and  some  venerable  yews  still  mark  the  spot 
where  her  original  house  stood,  it  being  known  as 
Tricengham.  These  yews,  said  to  have  been 
I)lantcd  about  that  time,  form  three  sides  of  a 
square.  The  religious  house,  rebuilt  in  William 
Itufus's  reign,  Avas  given,  at  the  dissolution  of  the 
monasteries  by  Henry  VHI.,  to  his  brother-in-law, 
Charles  Brandon,  Duke  of  Suffolk,  and  it  afterwards 


TAMWORTH  AND  TUTBURY.  103 

came  into  possession  of  the  Levesons.  From  the 
marriage  of  a  daughter  of  Sir  John  Leveson  with 
Sir  Thomas  Gower  sprang  the  family  of  the  present 
ducal  house  of  Sutherland,  the  head  of  it  beinff 
created  Marquis  of  Stafford  in  1786  and  Duke  of 
Sutherland  in  1833.  The  present  duke  is  the  fourth 
who  has  held  the  title,  his  grandmother  having  been 
the  daughter  of  the  Earl  of  Carlisle — the  famous 
Harriet,  Duchess  of  Sutherland.  The  old  Trentham 
Hall  was  built  in  1633,  being  rebuilt  and  enlarged 
by  Sir  Charles  Barrj  about  seventy  years  ago. 

TAMWORTH   AND    TUTBUIiY. 

Staffordshire  contains  some  famous  places.  In  the 
eastern  part  of  the  county,  bordering  Warwick,  is 
the  ancient  town  of  Tamworth,  standing  upon  the 
little  river  Tame  ;  this  was  originally  a  fortification 
built  for  defence  against  the  Danes,  and  its  castle 
was  founded  by  Marmion,  of  whom  Scott  writes, 

"They  hailed  Lord  Marmion, 

Tliey  hailed  him  Lord  of  Fontenaye, 
Of  Lutterward  and  Scrivelbaye, 
Of  Tamwortli  tower  and  town." 

Tamworth  is  also  Shakespearian  ground,  for  here 
Richmond  halted  on  his  march  to  Bosworth  Field, 
and  made  a  stirring  address  to  inspire  his  forces  for 
the  coming  combat.  In  later  years  Tamworth  sent 
Sir  Robert  Peel  to  Parliament,  and  his  bronze  statue 
adorns  the  market-square  j  the  ruins  of  the  ancient 


104   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

castle  are  almost  obliterated,  and  the  present  castle  is 
upon  higher  around,  its  architecture  being  of  various 
periods.  Tutburj  Castle,  of  which  little  is  left  but 
a  straggling  mass  of  ruins,  stands  on  an  eminence 
overlooking  the  Dove,  and  crowns  a  ridge  of  red 
sandstone  rock :  it  was  a  great  stronghold,  founded 
by  John  of  Gaunt,  covering  several  acres,  and  was 
demolished  after  the  Civil  Wars.  This  castle,  like 
so  many  other  famous  places,  was  also  one  of  the 
prison-palaces  of  Mary  Queen  of  Scots ;  although 
the  castle  is  destroyed,  yet  near  by  is  its  parish  church 
of  St.  Mary,  founded  by  Henry  de  Ferrars  in  the 
reign  of  William  Rufus,  and  known  then  as  Ferrars 
Abbey ;  its  west  end  is  one  of  the  most  perfect  Nor- 
man fronts  remaining  in  England,  and  it  has  been 
carefully  restored.  Tutbury  is  known  for  some  of 
its  ancient  customs,  among  them  tlie  annual  bull- 
running.  A  minstrel  band,  after  devotions  and  a 
long  sermon  in  the  abbey,  had  an  excellent  dinner 
in  the  castle,  and  then  repairing  to  the  abbey-gate 
demanded  the  bull ;  the  prior  let  the  bull  out,  with 
his  horns  and  tail  cut  off,  his  ears  cropped,  his  body 
greased,  and  his  nostrils  filled  with  popper  to  make 
liim  furious.  The  bull  being  let  loose,  the  steward 
proclaimed  that  none  were  to  come  nearer  than  forty 
feet,  nor  to  hinder  the  minstrels,  but  all  were  to  at- 
tend to  their  own  safety.  The  minstrels  were  to 
capture  the  bull  before  sunset,  and  on  that  side  of 
the  river,  but  if  they  failed  or  he  escaped  across  the 


ALTON  TOWERS.  105 

stream,  lie  remained  the  lord's  property.  It  was  sel- 
dom possible  to  take  him  fairly,  but  if  he  was  held 
long  enough  to  cut  off  some  of  his  hair  it  was  con- 
sidered a  capture,  and  after  a  bull-baiting  he  was 
given  to  the  minstrels.  Thus  originated  the  Tutbury 
bull-running,  which  ultimately  degenerated  into  a 
scene  of  wild  debauchery,  often  resulting  in  a  ter- 
rible riot.  The  Duke  of  Devonshire,  when  he  came 
into  possession  of  Tutbury,  was  compelled  to  abolish 
the  custom.  About  six  miles  from  Stafford  is  Chart- 
ley  Castle,  dating  from  the  Conquest,  and  belonging 
to  the  Earls  of  Chester  and  Derby,  and  subsequently 
to  the  famous  Earl  of  P^ssex,  who  here  entertained 
Queen  Elizabeth,  and  afterwards  planned  the  plot  for 
which  she  signed  his  death-warrant.  This  castle  has 
been  many  years  in  ruins :  it  had  a  circular  keep 
about  fifty  feet  in  diameter,  and  the  present  remains 
are  chiefly  the  fragments  of  two  round  towers  and 
part  of  a  wall  twelve  feet  thick,  with  loopholes  con- 
structed for  shooting  arrows  at  an  attacking  force. 
Queen  Mary  was  also  imprisoned  here,  and  a  bed 
said  to  have  been  wrought  by  her  is  shown  in  the 
village.  This  unfortunate  queen  seems  to  have  had 
more  prisons  and  wrought  more  needlework  than  any 
other  woman  in  Britain. 

ALTON   TOWERS. 

Alton  Towers,  the  superb   home  of   the   Earl  of 
Shrewsbury,  is  also  in  Staffordshire,  and  is  one  of  the 


106   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

famous  scats  of  England.  The  estate  stands  on  the 
Churnct,  and  the  liouse  and  grounds  are  on  one  side 
of  its  deep  valley.  The  present  mansion,  a  modern 
Gothic  structure,  was  built  about  fifty  years  ago  on 
a  rocky  plateau  overlooking  the  valley.  An  exten- 
sive park  surrounds  the  mansion,  and  there  are  sev- 
eral entrances.  Of  these  Quicksall  Lodge  ushers 
the  visitor  to  a  magnificent  spproach  known  as  the 
"  Earl's  Drive,"  extending  three  miles  along  the  val- 
ley of  the  Churnct,  and  having  its  natural  advantages 
increased  by  the  profuse  distribution  along  the  route 
of  statues,  busts,  and  ornamental  vases.  Another 
entrance  is  from  the  railway-station,  where  is  a  lodge 
of  great  beauty,  from  which  the  road,  about  a  mile 
in  length,  gradually  ascends  to  the  eminence  where 
the  mansion  stands.  The  approach  by  both  roads  is 
fine,  and  through  the  intervening  foliage  the  Towers 
open  upon  the  view — rich  in  spire,  dome,  and  gable, 
and  with  their  fair  proportions  enhanced  by  the  ar- 
cades that  adorn  the  house  and  the  antique  stone 
setting  that  brings  out  the  majesty  of  the  Gothic 
architecture.  The  gardens  of  this  fine  place  are 
beautiful,  their  extent  being  made  apparently  greater 
in  reality  by  the  artificially-formed  terraces  and  other 
resources  of  the  landscape  artist.  The  grounds  are 
most  lavishly  ornamented  with  statuary,  vases, 
temples,  and  fountains,  while  gardening  is  carried  to 
perfection.  There  is  a  grand  conservatory,  contain- 
ing a  palm-house  and  orangery.     From  the  top  of  an 


ALTON  TOWERS.  107 

elaborate  Gothic  temple  four  stories  high  there  is  a 
fine  view,  while  the  Flag  Tower,  a  massive  building 
with  four  turrets,  and  six  stories  high,  is  used  as 
an  observatory.  There  is  a  delightful  retreat  for  the 
weary  sightseer  called  the  Refuge,  a  fine  imitation 
of  Stonehenge,  and  Ina's  Rock,  where  Ina,  king  of 
Wesscx,  held  a  parliament  after  his  battle  with  the 
king  of  Mercia.  The  picturesque  ruins  of  Alton 
Castle  and  convent  are  in  the  grounds,  also  the  ruins 
of  Croxden  Abbey  and  the  charming  Alton  Church, 
which  was  of  Norman  foundation.  The  castle  existed 
at  the  time  of  the  Conquest,  and  the  domain  in  1408, 
through  the  marriage  of  Maud  Neville  to  John  Tal- 
bot, was  brought  into  the  possession  of  the  present 
family,  Talbot  having  been  afterwards  made  the  first 
Earl  of  Shrewsbury.  This  was  the  famous  English 
warrior  who  was  so  feared  in  France,  where  he  con- 
ducted brilliant  campaigns,  that  "  with  his  name  the 
mothers  stilled  their  babes."  He  was  killed  at  the 
siege  of  Chatillon  in  his  eightieth  year.  It  was  the 
sixth  Earl  of  Shrewsbury  who  married  Bess  of  Hard- 
wicke  and  made  her  fourth  husband.  It  was  the 
fifteenth  Earl  of  Shrewsbury  who  erected  the  present 
magnificent  structure,  with  its  varied  turrets  and 
battlements,  for  his  summer  residence,  where  before 
stood  a  plain  house  known  as  Alton  Lodge.  Upon 
his  tomb,  in  memory  of  the  wonderful  change  he 
wrought  in  the  place,  is  the  significant  motto:  "He 
made  the  desert  smile." 


108    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 
SIIKEWSBUKY. 

Westward  of  Stafford  is  the  land  of  the  "  proud 
Salopians,"  Shropshire,  through  ■which  flows  the 
Severn,  on  whose  banks  stands  the  ancient  town  from 
which  the  Earls  of  Shrewsbury  take  their  title.  AVe 
are  told  that  the  Britons  founded  this  town,  and  that 
in  Edward  the  Confessor's  time  it  had  five  churches 
and  two  hundred  and  thirty  houses,  iifty-onc  of  which 
were  cleared  away  to  make  room  for  the  castle 
erected  by  Koger  de  Montgomery,  a  kinsman  of 
William  the  Conqueror.  The  Norman  king  created 
him  Earl  of  Shrewsbury  long  before  the  present  line 
of  earls  began  witii  John  Talbot.  Wars  raged 
around  the  castle ;  it  was  besieged  and  battered,  for 
it  stood  an  outpost  in  the  borderland  of  AVales.  It 
was  here  that  Henry  IV.  assembled  an  army  to  march 
against  Glendower,  and  in  the  following  year  fought 
tlie  battle  of  Shrewsbury  against  Hotspur,  then 
marching  to  join  Glendower.  Hotspur's  death  de- 
cided tlie  battle.  Tiie  Wars  of  the  Koses  were 
fought  around  the  town,  and  here  Henry  VII.,  then 
tlie  Earl  of  Kichmond,  slept  when  going  to  liosworth 
Field ;  and  in  the  Civil  Wars  King  Charles  had 
Shrewsbury's  support,  but  Cromwell's  forces  captured 
it.  The  town  is  on  a  fine  peninsula  almost  encircled 
by  the  Severn,  and  the  castle  stands  at  the  en- 
trance to  the  peninsula.  Only  the  square  keep  and 
part  of  the  inner  walls  remain  of  the  original  castle, 


IRemains  oX  tbc  ol&  IRoman  Citi?  of 
•Glriconium,  Sbrewsburp. 


SHREWSBURY.  109 

but  a  fine  turret  lias  been  added  by  modern  hands. 
In  the  neighborhood  of  Shrewsbury  are  the  remains 
of  the  Roman  city  of  Uriconium,  said  to  have  been 
destroyed  by  the  Saxons  in  the  sixth  century. 
Shrewsbury  has  always  been  famous  for  pageants, 
its  annual  show  being  a  grand  display  by  the  trade 
societies.     It  is  also  famous  for  its  cakes,  of  which 

Shenstone  says : 

• 

"And  here  each  season  do  those  cakes  abide, 
Whose  honored  names  the  inventive  city  own, 
Rendering  through  Britain's  isle  Salopia's  praises  known." 

The  great  Shrewsbury  cake  is  the  "  simnel/'  made 
like  a  pie,  the  crust  colored  with  saffron  and  very 
thick.  It  is  a  confection  said  to  be  unsafe  when 
eaten  to  excess,  for  an  old  gentleman,  writing  from 
melancholy  experience  in  1595,  records  that  "  sodden 
bread  which  bee  called  simnels  bee  verie  unwhole- 
some." The  Shropshire  legend  about  its  origin  is 
that  a  happy  couple  got  into  a  dispute  whether  they 
should  have  for  dinner  a  boiled  pudding  or  a  baked 
pie.  While  they  disputed  they  got  hungry,  and 
came  to  a  compromise  by  first  boiling  and  then  bak- 
ing the  dish  that  was  prepared.  To  the  grand  result 
of  the  double  process — -his  name  being  Simon  and 
her's  Nell — the  combined  name  of  simnel  was  given. 
And  thus  from  their  happily- settled  contention  has 
come  Shrewsbury's  great  cake,  of  which  all  England 
acknowledges  the  merit. 


110  ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 
KRIDGENORTII    AND    WENLOCK    AHliKV. 

Following  down  the  Severn  River  from  Shrews- 
bury, wc  come  to  Bridgcnorth,  an  ancient  town 
l»lantod  on  a  steep  hill,  full  of  quaint  houses,  and 
having  an  old  covered  market  where  the  country- 
people  gather  on  Saturdays.  The  lower  part  is  of 
brick,  and  the  upper  j)art  is  black-and-white-tim- 
bered, but  the  human  love  for  what  is  old  anS 
familiar  is  shown  by  the  way  in  which  the  people 
still  fill  up  the  old  market-house,  though  a  fine 
one  has  recently  been  built.  The  most  j)rized  of 
the  old  houses  of  this  venerable  town  is  a  foundry 
and  blacksmith  shop  standing  by  the  river;  it  was 
in  this  house  that  Bisliop  Percy,  author  of  the 
Kdiqnr.^,  was  born.  On  the  promontory  of  sand- 
stone, which  steeply  rises  about  one  lunulrcd  and 
eighty  feet  above  the  river,  the  upper  part  of  the 
town  is  built,  and  here  are  the  ruins  of  Uridgenorth 
Castle,  which  stood  in  an  exceptionally  strong  situa- 
tion. The  red  sandstone  predominates  here,  but  not 
much  of  it  remains  in  the  castle,  there  being  little 
left  excepting  a  huge  fragment  of  the  massive  wall 
of  the  keep,  which  now  inclines  so  much  on  one  side 
from  the  settling  of  the  foundation  as  to  be  almost 
unsafe.  This  castle  was  built  eight  hundred  years 
airo  bv  the  third  and  last  of  the  Norman  Earls  of 
Shrewsbury  ;  it  was  held  for  King  Charles  in  the 
Civil  Wars,  and  underwent  a  month's  siege  before  it 


BRIDGENORTII  AND  WENLOCK  ABBEY.      Ill 

surrendered,  when  the  conquerors  destroyed  it. 
Bridgenorth  is  the  most  picturesque  of  all  the  towns 
on  the  Severn,  owing  to  the  steep  promontory  up 
which  the  houses  extend  fi'om  the  lower  to  the  upper 
town  and  the  magnificent  views  from  the  castle. 
The  communication  with  the  hill  is  by  a  series  of 
steeply-winding  alleys,  each  being  almost  a  continu- 
ous stairway  :  they  are  known  as  the  ''  Steps."  A 
bridge  witli  projecting  bastions  crosses  the  river  and 
connects  the  higher  with  the  lower  parts  of  the  town, 
thus  giving  the  place  its  name. 

About  twelve  miles  south-east  of  Shrewsbury  is 
the  village  of  Much  Wenlock,  where  there  are  re- 
mains of  a  magnilicent  abbey  founded  by  tlie  Black 
monks,  and  exhibiting  several  of  the  Early  Eng- 
lish and  Gothic  styles  of  architecture,  but,  like  most 
else  in  these  parts,  it  has  fallen  in  ruin,  and  many 
of  the  materials  have  been  carried  off  to  build  other 
houses.  Portions  of  the  nave,  transepts,  chapter- 
house, and  abbot's  house  remain,  the  latter  being 
restored  and  making  a  fine  specimen  of  ecclesiastical 
domestic  architecture  built  around  a  court.  An 
open  cloister  extends  the  entire  length,  and  beautiful 
intersecting  Norman  arches  adorn  the  chapter-house. 
There  are  some  quaint  old  houses  in  the  town — tim- 
bered structures  with  bold  bow-windows — and  not  a 
few  of  them  of  great  age.  Roger  de  Montgomery 
is  credited  with  founding  Wenlock  Abbey  at  the 
time  of  the  Norman  Conquest.     The  site  w^as  pre- 


112  ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

viously  occupied  by  a  nunnery,  said  to  have  been 
the  burial-place  of  St.  Milburgh,  who  was  the  grand- 
daughter of  King  Penda  of  Mcrcia.  This  was  a 
famous  religious  house  in  its  day,  and  it  injikes  a 
picturesque  ruin,  while  the  beauty  of  the  neighbor- 
ing scenery  shows  how  careful  the  recluses  and  re- 
ligious men  of  old  were  to  cast  their  lots  and  build 
their  abbeys  in  pleasant  places. 

LUDLOW   CASTLE. 

The  most  important  of  .nil  the  castles  in  the  middle 
marches  of  Wales  was  Ludlow,  whose  grand  ruins, 
mouldered  into  beauty,  stand  upon  the  river  Tamo, 
near  the  western  border  of  Shropshire.  It  was  here 
that  the  lord  president  of  the  Council  of  Wales  held 
liis  court.  Its  ruins,  though  abandoned,  have  not 
fallen  into  complete  decay,  so  that  it  gives  a  fine  rep- 
resentation of  the  ancient  feudal  border  stronghold : 
it  is  of  great  size,  with  long  stretches  of  walls  and 
towers,  interspersed  with  thick  masses  of  foliage  and 
stately  trees,  while  beneath  is  the  dark  rock  on 
which  it  is  founded.  It  M'as  built  shortly  after  the 
Conquest  by  Koger  de  Montgomery,  and  after  being 
held  by  the  Norman  Earls  of  Shrewsbury  it  was 
fortified  by  Henry  I. ;  then  Joyce  de  Dinan  lield  it, 
and  confined  Hugh  de  Mortimer  as  prisoner  in  one 
of  the  towers,  still  known  as  Mortimer's  Tower. 
Edward  IV.  established  it  as  the  place  of  residence 
for  the  lord  president  of  the  Council  that  governed 


LUDLOW  CASTLE.  113 

Wales :  here  the  youthful  King  Edward  V.  was  pro- 
claimed, soon  mysteriously  to  disappear.  From 
Ludlow  Castle,  Wales  was  governed  for  more  than 
three  centuries,  and  in  Queen  Elizabeth's  time  many 
important  additions  were  made  to  it.  The  young 
Philip  Sidney  lived  here,  his  father  being  the  lord 
president ;  the  stone  bridge,  replacing  the  draw- 
bridge, and  the  great  portal  were  built  at  that  time. 
In  1634,  Milton's  "  Masque  of  Comus  "  was  written 
and  represented  here  while  Earl  Bridgewater  was 
lord  president,  one  of  the  scenes  being  the  castle 
and  town  of  Ludlov/ :  this  representation  was  part 
of  the  festivities  attending  the  earl's  installation  on 
Micliaelmas  Night.  It  Avas  in  Ludlow  Castle  that 
Butler  wrote  part  of  Hudihras.  The  castle  was  held 
for  King  Charles,  but  was  delivered  up  to  the  Parlia- 
mentary forces  in  1646.  The  present  exterior  of 
the  castle  denotes  its  former  magnificence.  The 
foundations  are  built  into  a  dark-gray  rock,  and  the 
castle  rises  from  the  point  of  a  headland,  the  north- 
ern front  consisting  of  square  towers  with  high,  con- 
necting embattled  walls.  In  the  last  century  trees 
were  planted  on  the  rock  and  in  the  deep  and  wide 
ditch  that  guarded  the  castle.  The  chief  entrance 
is  by  a  gateway  under  a  low,  pointed  arch  which 
bears  the  arms  of  Queen  Elizabeth  and  of  Earl  Pem- 
broke. There  are  several  acres  enclosed,  and  the 
keep  is  an  immense  square  tower  of  the  Early 
Norman,  one  hundred  and  ten  feet  high  and  ivy- 

VoL.  I.— 8 


114  ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

mantled  to  the  top.  On  its  ground  floor  is  the  dun- 
geon, half  underground,  with  square  openings  in  the 
floor  connecting  with  the  apartment  above.  The 
great  hall  is  now  without  roof  or  floor,  and  a  tower 
at  the  west  end  is  called  Prince  Arthur's  Tower, 
while  there  are  also  remains  of  the  old  chapel.  The 
ruins  have  an  imposing  aspect,  the  towers  being 
richlv  clustered  around  the  keep.  This  famous 
castle  is  now  the  property  of  Earl  Powis. 

The  town  of  Ludlow  adjoins  the  castle,  and  on 
approaching  it  the  visitor  is  struck  by  the  line 
appearance  of  the  tower  of  the  church  of  St.  Law- 
rence. The  church  is  said  to  be  the  finest  in 
Shropshire,  and  this  tower  was  built  in  the  time 
of  Edward  IV.  Its  chantry  is  over  six  hundred 
years  old,  and  belonged  to  the  Palmers'  guild. 
Their  ordinances  are  still  preserved,  one  of  which 
is  to  the  effect  that  "  if  any  man  wishes,  as  is  the 
custom,  to  keep  night-watches  with  the  dead,  this 
may  be  allowed,  provided  that  he  does  not  call  up 
ghosts."  The  town  is  filled  with  timber-ribbed, 
pargetted  houses,  one  of  tha  most  striking  of  these 
being  the  old  Feathers  Inn.  The  exterior  is  rich  in 
various  devices,  including  the  feathers  of  the  Prince 
of  Wales,  adopted  as  the  sign  perhaps  in  the  days 
of  Prince  Arthur,  when  the  inn  was  built.  Many 
of  the  rooms  are  panelled  with  carved  oak  and  have 
quaintly  moulded  ceilings.  It  is  not  often  that  the 
modern  tourist  has  a  chance  to  rest  under  such  a 


LICHFIELD  CATHEDRAL.  115 

venerable  roof,  for  it  is  still  a  comfortable  hostelrie. 
The  ancient  priory  of  Austin  Friars  was  at  Ludlow, 
but  is  obliterated. 

In  the  neighborhood  of  Ludlow  are  many  attrac- 
tive spots.  From  the  summit  of  the  Vignals,  about 
four  miles  away,  there  is  a  superb  view  over  the 
hills  of  Wales  to  the  south  and  west,  and  the  land 
of  Shropshire  to  the  northward.  Looking  towards 
Ludlow,  immediately  at  the  foot  of  the  hill  is  seen 
the  wooded  valley  of  Hay  Park ;  it  was  here  that 
the  children  of  the  Earl  of  Bridge  water  were  lost, 
an  event  that  gave  Milton  occasion  to  write  the 
^'Masque  of  Comus,"  and  locate  its  scenes  at  and  in 
the  neighborhood  of  Ludlow.  Richard's  Castle  is 
at  the  southern  end  of  this  wood,  but  there  is  not 
much  of  the  old  ruin  left  in  the  deep  dingle.  At 
Downton  Castle  the  romantic  walks  in  the  gai'dens 
abound  in  an  almost  endless  variety  of  ferns. 
Staunton  Lacey  Church,  containing  Romanesque 
work,  and  supposed  to  be  older  than  the  Conquest, 
is  also  near  Ludlow.  But  the  grand  old  castle  and 
its  quaint  and  venerated  Feathers  Inn  are  the  great 
attractions  before  which  all  others  pale.  What  an 
amazing  tale  of  revelry,  pageant,  and  inti'igue  they 
could  tell  were  only  the  old  walls  endowed  with 
voice  ! 

LICHFIELD    CATHEDRAL. 

We  are  told  that  in  Central  Staffordshire  churches 
with    spires    are    rare.      The    region   of  the    Trent 


116    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

abounds  in  low  and  simple  rather  than  lofty  church- 
towers,  but  to  this  rule  the  cathedral  city  of  Lich- 
field is  an  exception,  having  five  steeples,  of  which 
three  beautiful  spires — often  called  the  "  Ladies  of 
the  Vale " — adorn  the  cathedral  itself.  The  town 
stands  in  a  fertile  and  gently  undulating  district 
without  ambitious  scenery,  and  the  cathedral,  which 
is  three  hundred  and  seventy-five -feet  long  audits 
spires  two  hundred  and  fifty-eight  feet  high,  is  its 
great  and  almost  only  glory.  It  is  an  ancient  place, 
dating  from  the  days  of  the  Romans  and  the  Saxons, 
when  the  former  slaughtered  without  mercy  a  band 
of  the  early  Christian  martyrs  near  the  present  site 
of  the  town,  whence  it  derives  its  name,  meaning 
the  "  Field  of  the  Dead."  This  massacre  took 
place  in  the  fourth  century,  and  in  memory  of  it 
the  city  bears  as  its  arms  "an  escutcheon  of  land- 
scape, with  many  martyrs  in  it  in  several  ways 
massacred."  In  the  seventh  century  a  church  was 
built  there,  and  the  hermit  St.  Chad  became  its 
bishop.  His  cell  was  near  the  present  site  of 
Stowe,  where  there  was  a  spring  of  clear  water 
rising  in  the  heart  of  a  forest,  and  out  of  the  woods 
there  daily  came  a  snow-white  doe  to  supply  him  with 
milk.  The  legend  tells  that  the  nightingales  singing 
in  the  trees  distracted  the  hermit's  prayers,  so  he 
besought  that  he  might  be  relieved  from  this  trial ; 
and  since  that  time  the  nightingales  in  the  woods  of 
Stowe  have  remained  mute.    After  death  the  hermit- 


LICHFIELD  CATHEDRAL.  117 

bishop  was  canonized  and  Lichfield  flourished,  at 
least  one  of  his  successors  being  an  archbishop. 
St.  Chad's  Well  is  still  pointed  out  at  Stowe,  but 
his  Lichfield  church  long  ago  disappeared.  A 
Korman  church  succeeded  it  in  the  eleventh  cen- 
tury, and  has  also  been  removed,  though  some  of 
its  foundations  remain  under  the  present  cathedral 
choir.  About  the  year  1200  the  first  parts  of  the 
present  cathedral  were  built,  and  it  was  over  a 
hundred  years  in  building.  Its  architecture  is 
Early  English  and  Decorated,  the  distinguishing 
features  being  the  three  spires,  the  beautiful  western 
front,  and  the  Lady  Chapel.  The  latter  terminates 
in  a  polygonal  apse  of  unique  arrangement,  and  the 
red  sandstone  of  which  the  cathedral  is  built  gives 
a  warm  and  effective  coloring.  Some  of  the  ancient 
bishops  of  Lichfield  were  fighting  men,  and  at 
times  their  cathedral  was  made  into  a  castle  sur- 
rounded by  walls  and  a  moat,  and  occasionally  be- 
sieged. The  Puritans  grievously  battered  it,  and 
knocked  down  the  central  spire.  The  cathedral 
was  afterwards  rebuilt  by  Christopher  Wren.  As 
all  the  old  stained  glass  was  knocked  out  of  the 
windows  during  the  Civil  Wars,  several  of  them 
have  been  refilled  with  fine  glass  from  the  abbey  at 
Liege.  Most  of  the  ancient  monuments  were  also 
destroyed  during  the  sieges,  but  many  fine  tombs 
of  more  modern  construction  replace  them,  among 
them  being   the   famous   tomb   by   Chantrey  of  the 


lis    KNGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVK 

"  Sleeping  Children."  Tlie  ancient  chroniclers  tell 
bad  stories  of  the  treatment  this  famous  church 
received  during  the  Civil  Wars.  When  the  spire 
Ava.s  knocked  down,  crushing  the  roof,  a  marksman 
in  the  church  shot  Lord  Brooke,  the  leader  of  the 
Parlianientary  besiegers,  through  his  hehnet,  of  which 
the  visor  was  up,  and  he  fell  dead.  The  marksman 
^vas  a  deaf  and  dumb  man,  and  the  event  happened 
on  St.  Chad's  Day,  March  2d.  The  loss  of  their 
leader  redoubled  the  ardor  of  the  besiegers ;  they 
sot  a  battery  at  work  and  forced  a  surrender  in 
three  days.  Then  we  are  told  that  they  demolished 
nionunicnts,  pulled  down  carvings,  smashed  the 
windows,  destroyed  the  records,  set  up  guard-houses 
in  the  cross-aisles,  broke  up  the  pavement,  every  day 
hunted  a  cat  through  the  church,  so  as  to  enjoy  the 
echo  from  the  vaulted  roof,  and  baptized  a  calf  at 
the  font.  The  Royalists,  however,  soon  retook 
Lichh'eld,  and  gave  King  Charles  a  reception  after 
the  battle  of  Kaseby,  but  it  finally  surrendered  to 
Cromwell  in  1640.  Until  the  Kestoration  of  Charles 
II.  the  cathedral  lay  in  ruins,  even  the  lead  having 
been  removed  from  the  roof.  In  1601,  liishop 
Ilacket  was  consecrated,  and  for  eight  years  he 
steadily  Avorkcd  at  rebuilding,  having  so  far  ad- 
vanced in  1009  that  the  cathedral  Avas  recon- 
secrated with  great  ceremony.  His  last  work  was 
to  order  the  bells,  three  of  which  were  hung  in  time 


LICHFIELD  CATHEDRAL.  119 

to  toll  at  his  funeral ;  his  tomb  is  in  the  south  aisle 
of  the  clioir. 

Lichfield  has  five  steeples,  grouped  together  in 
most  views  of  the  town  from  the  Vale  of  Trent,  the 
other  two  steeples  belonging  to  St.  Mary's  and  St. 
Michael's  churches ;  the  church-yard  of  the  latter  is 
probably  the  largest  in  England,  covering  seven 
acres,  through  which  an  avenue  of  stately  elms  leads 
up  to  the  churcli.  The  town  has  not  much  else  in 
the  way  of  buildings  that  is  remarkable.  In  a  plain 
house  at  a  corner  of  the  market-place,  where  lived 
one  Michael  Johnson,  a  bookseller,  Dr.  Samuel  John- 
son, his  son,  Avas  born  in  1709,  and  in  the  adjacent 
market-place  is  Dr.  Johnson's  statue  upon  a  pedestal 
adorned  with  bas-reliefs :  one  of  these  represents 
the  "  infant  Samuel "  sitting  on  his  father's  shoulder 
to  imbibe  Tory  principles  from  Dr.  Sacheverel's  ser- 
mons ;  another,  the  boy  carried  by  his  schoolfellows ; 
and  a  third  displays  him  undergoing  a  penance  for 
youthful  disobedience  by  standing  for  an  hour  bare- 
headed in  the  rain.  The  Three  Crowns  Inn  is  also 
in  the  market-place,  where  in  1776  Boswell  and 
Johnson  stayed,  and,  as  Boswell  writes,  "  had  a 
comfortable  supper  and  got  into  iiigh  spirits,"  when 
Jolmson  "■  expatiated  in  praise  of  Lichfield  and  its 
inhabitants,  who,  he  said,  were  the  most  sober,  decent 
people  in  England,  were  the  genteelest  in  proportion 
to  their  wealth,  and  spoke  the  purest  English.'* 
David  Garrick  went  to  school  to  Dr.  Johnson  in  the 


120  ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

suburbs  of  Lichfield,  at  Edial ;  Addison  lived  once 
at  Lichfield ;  and  iSelvvyn  was  its  bishop  a  few  years 
ago,  and  is  buried  in  the  cathedral  close ;  but  the 
chief  memories  of  the  ancient  town  cluster  around 
St.  Chad,  Johnson,  and  Garrick. 

LADY    GODIVA    OF   COVENTRY. 

The  ''  three  spires "  which  have  so  much  to  do 
with  the  fame  of  Lichfield  are  reproduced  in  the  less 
pretentious  but  equally  famous  town  of  Coventry, 
not  far  away  in  Warwickshire,  but  they  do  not  all 
belong  to  the  same  church.  The  Coventry  Cathedral 
was  long  ago  swept  away,  but  the  town  still  has 
three  churches  of  much  interest,  and  is  ricii  in  the 
old  brick-and-timbered  architecture  of  two  and  three 
centuries  ago.  But  the  boast  of  Coventry  is  Lady 
Godiva,  wife  of  Lcofric  or  Lurichi  the  Earl  of  Mcrcia, 
who  died  in  1057.  The  townsfolk  suffered  under 
heavy  taxes  and  services,  and  she  besought  her  lord 
to  relieve  them.  After  rej)eatcd  refusals  he  finally 
consented,  but  under  a  condition  which  he  was  sure 
Lady  CSodiva  would  not  accept,  Avhich  was  none  otlier 
than  that  she  should  ride  naked  from  one  end  of  the 
town  to  the  other.  To  his  astonishment  she  consented, 
and,  as  Dugdale  informs  us,  "The  noble  lady  upon 
an  appointed  day  got  on  horseback  naked,  with  her 
hair  loose,  so  that  it  covered  all  her  body  but  the 
legs,  and  then  performing  her  jouniey,  she  returned 
with  joy  to  her  husband,  who  thereupon  granted  the 


LADY  GODTVA  OF  COVENTRY.  121 

inhabitants  a  charter  of  freedom."  As  the  ancient 
minstrel  quaintly  records  the  deed  in  rhyme :  "  I 
Lurichi,  for  tlic  love  of  thee,  doe  make  Coventrie 
tol-free."  The  inliabitants  deserted  the  streets  and 
barred  all  the  windows,  so  that  no  one  could  see  her, 
but,  as  there  are  exceptions  to  all  rules,  Tennyson 
■writes  that 

"  One  low  churl,  composed  of  thankless  earth, 
The  fatal  byword  of  all  years  to  come, 
Boring  a  little  auger-hole,  in  fear 
Peeped ;  but  his  eyes,  before  they  had  their  will, 
Were  shrivelled  into  darkness  in  his  head, 
And  dropt  before  him.     So  tlie  Powers  wlio  wait 
On  noble  deeds  cancelled  a  sense  misused ; 
And  she,  that  knew  not,  passed." 

Thus  has  "  Peeping  Tom  of  Coventry  "  passed  into  a 
byAvord,  and  his  statue  stands  in  a  niche  on  the  front 
of  a  house  on  the  High  Street,  as  if  leaning  out  of  a 
window — an  ancient  and  battered  effigy  for  all  the 
Avorld  to  see.  Like  all  other  things  that  come  down 
to  us  by  tradition,  this  legend  is  doubted,  but  in 
Coventry  there  are  sincere  believers,  and  "  Lady 
Godiva's  procession  "  used  to  be  an  annual  display, 
closing  with  a  fair :  this  ceremony  was  opened  with 
religious  services,  after  Avhich  the  procession  started, 
the  troops  and  city  authorities,  with  music  and 
banners,  escorting  Lady  Godiva,  a  woman  made  up 
for  the  occasion  in  gauzy  tights  and  riding  a  cream- 
colored  horse  ;  representatives  of  the  trades  and  civic 


122   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

societies  followed  licr.     This  pageant  has  fallen  into 
disuse. 

In  this  ancient  city  of  Coventry  there  are  some 
interesting  memorials  of  the  past — the  venerable 
gateway,  the  old  St.  Mary's  Hall,  with  its  protruding 
gable  fronting  on  the  street,  coming  down  to  us  from 
the  fourteenth  century,  and  many  other  quaint  brick 
and  lialf-timbercd  and  strongly-constructed  houses 
that  link  the  dim  past  with  the  active  present.  Its 
three  spires  surmount  St.  ^lichael's.  Trinity,  and 
Christ  churches,  and  while  all  are  tine,  the  first  is 
the  best,  being  regarded  as  one  of  the  most  beauti- 
ful spires  in  England.  The  ancient  stone  pulpit  of 
Trinity  Church,  constructed  in  the  form  of  a  balcony 
of  open  stone-work,  is  also  much  admired.  St. 
Michael's  Ciiurch,  which  dates  from  the  fourteenth 
century,  is  large  enough  to  be  a  cathedral,  and  its 
steeple  is  said  to  have  been  the  first  constructed. 
This  beautiful  and  remarkably  slender  spire  rises 
three  hundred  and  three  f^^et,  its  lowest  stage  being 
an  octagonal  lantern  supported  by  flying  buttresses. 
The  supporting  tower  has  been  elaborately  decorated, 
but  much  of  the  sculpture  has  fallen  into  decay, 
being  made  of  the  rich  but  friable  red  sandstone  of 
this  part  of  the  country ;  the  interior  of  the  church 
has  been  restored.  The  Coventry  workhouse  is 
located  in  an  old  monastery,  where  a  part  of  the 
cloisters  remain  with  the  dormitory  above ;  in  it  is 
an  oriel  window  where  Queen  Elizabi'th  on  visiting 


LADY  GODIVA  OF  COVENTRY.  123 

the  town  is  reputed  to  have  stood  and  answered  a 
reception  address  in  rliyme  from  the  "  Men  of 
Coventrie  "  with  some  doggerel  of  equal  merit,  and 
concluding  with  the  words,  "  Good  Lord,  what  fools 
ye  be  !"  The  good  Queen  Bess,  we  are  told,  liked 
to  visit  Coventry  to  see  bull-baiting.  As  we  have 
said,  Coventry  formerly  had  a  cathedral  and  a 
castle,  but  both  have  been  swept  away ;  it  was  an 
important  stronghold  after  the  Korman  Conquest, 
when  the  Earls  of  Chester  were  lords  of  the  place. 
In  the  fourteenth  century  it  was  fortified  Avith  walls 
of  great  height  and  thickness,  three  miles  in  circuit 
and  strengthened  by  thirty-two  towers,  each  of  the 
twelve  gates  being  defended  by  a  portcullis.  A 
parliament  was  held  at  Coventry  by  Henry  VI., 
and  Henry  YII.  was  heartily  welcomed  there  after 
Bosworth  Field ;  while  the  town  was  also  a  favorite 
residence  of  Edward  the  Black  Prince.  Among  the 
many  places  of  captivity  for  Mary  Queen  of  Scots 
Coventry  also  figures ;  the  walls  were  mostly 
knocked  down  during  the  Civil  Wars,  and  now 
only  some  fragments,  with  one  of  the  old  gates, 
remain.  In  later  years  it  has  been  chiefly  cele- 
brated in  the  peaceful  arts  in  the  manufacture  of 
silks  and  ribbons  and  the  dyeing  of  broad-cloth  in 
"  Coventry  true  blue ;"  at  present  it  is  the  "  Cov- 
entry bicycle"  that  makes  Lady  Godiva's  ancient 
city  famous,  this  being  its  most  extensive  industry 
imder  modern  auspices. 


124   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

BELVOIR   CASTLE. 

In  describing  the  ancient  baronial  mansion,  Had- 
don  Hall,  it  was  mentioned  that  the  Dukes  of  Kut- 
land  had  abandoned  it  as  their  residence  about  a 
liundred  years  ago  and  gone  to  Bel  voir  in  Leicester- 
shire, lielvoir  (pronounced  Becver)  Castle  stands  on 
the  eastern  border  of  Leicestershire,  in  a  magnificent 
situation  on  a  high  wooded  hill,  and  gets  its  name 
from  the  beautiful  view  its  occupants  enjoy  over  a 
wide  expanse  of  country.  In  ancient  times  it  was 
a  priory,  and  it  has  been  a  castle  since  the  Korman 
Conquest.  ]\Iany  of  the  large  estates  attached  to 
Belvoir  have  come  down  by  uninterrupted  succes- 
sion from  that  time  to  the  present  Duke  of  Rutland. 
The  castle  itself,  however,  after  the  Conquest  be- 
longed to  the  I]arl  of  Chester,  and  afterwards  to 
the  family  of  Lord  Bos.  In  the  sixteenth  century, 
by  a  fortunate  marriage,  the  castle  passed  into  the 
IManners  family.  Thomas  Manners  was  created  by 
Henry  VI I L  the  first  Earl  of  Rutland,  and  he  re- 
stored the  castle,  which  had  for  some  time  been  in 
ruins.  His  son  enlarged  it,  making  a  noble  residence. 
The  sixth  Karl  of  Rutland  had  two  sons,  we  are 
told,  who  were  murdered  bv  witchcraft  at  Belvoir 
through  the  sorcery  of  three  female  servants  in 
revenge  for  their  dismissal.  The  three  "  witches " 
were  tried  and  committed  to  Lincoln  jail.  They 
were  a  mother  and  two  daughters,  and  the  mother 


BELVOIR  CASTLE,  125 

before  going  to  the  jail  wished  the  bread  and  butter 
she  ate  might  choke  her  if  guilty.  Sure  enough, 
the  chronicler  tells  us,  she  died  on  the  way  to  jail, 
and  the  two  daughters,  afterwards  confessing  their 
guilt,  were  executed  March  1 1,  1618.  The  seventh 
Earl  of  Rutland  received  Charles  I.  at  Belvoir,  and 
in  the  wars  that  followed  the  castle  was  besieged 
and  ruined.  After  the  Restoration  it  was  rebuilt, 
and  in  finer  style.  The  Dukes  of  Rutland  began  to 
adapt  it  more  and  more  as  a  family  residence,  and, 
after  abandoning  Haddon  Hall,  Belvoir  was  greatly 
altered  and  made  a  princely  mansion.  It  consists 
of  a  quadrangular  court,  around  which  are  castel- 
lated buildings,  with  towers  surmounting  them,  and 
occupying  almost  the  entire  summit  of  the  hill. 
Here  the  duke  can  look  out  over  no  less  than 
twenty-two  of  his  manors  in  the  neighboring  valleys. 
The  interior  is  sumptuously  furnished,  and  has  a 
collection  of  valuable  paintings.  A  large  part  of 
the  ancient  castle  was  burnt  in  1816.  The  Staunton 
Tower,  however,  still  exists.  It  is  the  stronghold 
of  the  castle,  and  was  successfully  defended  by  Lord 
Staunton  against  William  of  Normandy.  Upon 
every  royal  visit  the  key  of  this  tower  is  presented 
to  the  sovereign,  the  last  occasion  being  a  visit  of 
Queen  Victoria.  Belvoir,  in  the  generous  hands  of 
the  Dukes  of  Rutland,  still  maintains  the  princely 
hospitality  of  the  "  King  of  the  Peak."  A  record 
kept  of  a  period    of  thirteen  weeks,   from   Christ- 


12G    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

mas  to  Easter,  shows  that  two  thousand  persons 
dined  at  the  duke's  table-,  two  thousand  four  hun- 
dred and  twenty-one  in  the  steward's  room,  and 
eleven  thousand  three  hundred  and  twelve  in  the 
servants'  hall.  They  were  blessed  with  good  appe- 
tites too,  for  they  devoured  about  seven  thousand 
dollars  worth  of  provisions,  including  eight  thousand 
three  hundred  and  thirty-three  loaves  of  bread  and 
twenty-two  thousand  nine  hundred  and  sixty-three 
pounds  of  meat,  exclusive  of  game,  besides  drinking 
two  thousand  four  hundred  bottles  of  wine  and 
seventy  hogsheads  of  ale.  Thus  does  Belvoir  main- 
tain the  inheritance  of  hospitable  obligation  de- 
scended from  Had  don  Hall. 

CHARNWOOD    FOREST. 

We  have  now  come  into  Leicestershire,  and  in 
that  county,  north  of  Leicester  City,  is  the  out- 
cropping of  the  earth's  rocky  backbone,  which  has 
been  thrust  up  into  high  wooded  hills  along  the  edge 
of  the  valley  of  the  Soar  for  several  miles,  and  is 
known  as  C'harnwood  Forest.  It  hardly  deserves 
the  name  of  a  forest,  however,  for  most  of  this 
strange  rocky  region  is  bare  of  trees,  and  many  of 
the  patches  of  wood  that  are  there  are  of  modern 
growth.  Yet  in  ancient  years  there  was  plenty  of 
wood,  and  a  tradition  comes  down  to  us  that  in 
Charnwood  once  upon  a  time  a  squirrel  could  travel 
six  miles  on  the  trees  without  touching  the  ground, 


CHARNWOOD  FOREST.  127 

and  a  traveller  journey  entirely  across  the  forest 
without  seeing  the  sun.  The  district  consists  of  two 
lines  of  irregular  ridgy  hills,  rising  generally  three 
hundred  to  four  hundred  feet  above  the  neighboring 
country,  the  most  elevated  part  being  Bardon  Hill, 
nine  hundred  feet  high.  These  ridges  are  separated 
by  a  sort  of  valley  like  a  KorAvegian  fjord,  filled 
with  red  marl.  The  rocks  are  generally  volcanic 
products  with  much  slate,  Avhich  is  extensively 
quarried.  Granite  and  sienite  are  also  quarried, 
and  at  the  chief  granite-quarry — ]\[ount  Sorrel,  an 
eminence  which  projects  into  the  valley  of  the  Soar 
— was  in  former  times  the  castle  of  Hugh  Lupus, 
Earl  of  Chester.  In  King  John's  reign  the  garrison 
of  this  castle  so  harassed  the  neighborhood  that  it 
was  described  as  the  ''nest  of  the  devil  and  a  den 
of  thieves."  In  Henry  III.'s  reign  it  was  captured 
and  demolished  ;  the  latter  fate  is  gradually  befall- 
ing the  hill  on  which  it  stood,  under  the  operations 
of  the  quarrymen.  Near  these  quarries  is  the  ancient 
village  of  Groby,  which  Avas  quite  a  flourishing 
place  eight  hundred  years  ago,  and  has  not  grown 
much  since.  This  village  belonged  to  the  Ferrars 
family,  and  an  heiress  of  that  family  was  the  un- 
fortunate Queen  Elizabeth  Widvile.  About  two 
miles  away  is  Bradgate,  a  spot  of  rare  beauty  and 
interest,  the  history  of  which  is  closely  connected 
with  Groby.  On  the  end  of  one  of  the  ridges  of 
Charnwood,  just  where  it  is  sinking  down  to  the 


128   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND   DESCRIPTIVE. 

level  of  the  surrounding  country,  stands  Bradgatc 
House.  Tlie  surrounding  park  is  quite  wild  and 
bare,  but  there  are  fine  old  oaks  in  the  lower  por- 
tions. From  the  ancient  house  a  beautiful  dell, 
called  the  Happy  Valley,  leads  to  the  neighboring 
village  of  Newtown  Linford.  Bradgatc  House  was 
destroyed  in  the  early  part  of  the  last  century  by 
its  mistress.  The  Earl  of  Suffolk,  who  then  owned 
it,  brought  his  wife,  who  had  no  taste  for  a  rural 
life,  from  the  metropolis  to  live  there.  Her  sister  in 
London  wrote  to  inquire  how  she  was  getting  on. 
She  answered,  "  The  house  is  tolerable,  the  country 
a  forest,  and  the  inhabitants  all  brutes."  In  reply 
the  sister  advised,  ''  Set  the  house  on  fire,  and  run 
away  by  the  light  of  it."  The  countess  took  the 
advice,  and  Bradgatc  never  was  rebuilt. 

ULVERSCROFT  AND  GRACE  DIEU  ABBEY. 

Charnwood  Forest,  like  almost  every  other  place 
in  England,  contains  the  remains  of  religious  houses. 
There  was  a  priory  at  Ulverscroft,  not  far  from 
Bradgatc,  and  some  picturesque  moss-grown  remains 
still  exist,  said  to  be  the  finest  ruin  in  Leicestershire, 
(irace  Dicu  Abbey  was  also  in  the  forest,  and  on 
the  dissolution  of  the  monasteries  was  granted  to 
the  Beaumonts ;  the  ruins  of  this  abbey  were  much 
frequented  by  Wordsworth,  who  dedicated  his  poems 
to  their  owner.  The  Cistercians  have  in  the  present 
century    established   the    monastery   of    Mount   St. 


ULVEESCROFT  AND  GRACE  DIEU   ABBEY.    129 

Bernard  in  the  forest,  and  brought  large  tracts  under 
cultivation  as  garden-hmd.  This  is  said  to  be  the 
only  "  mitred  abbey  "  in  England.  ]3ardon,  the 
highest  hill  of  Charnwood,  which  is  near  by,  is 
located  almost  exactly  in  the  centre  of  England,  and 
is  an  obtuse-angled  triangular  summit  that  can  be 
seen  for  miles  away.  Not  far  from  the  forest  are 
several  famous  places.  The  abandoned  castle  of 
Ashby  de  la  Zouche  has  been  made  the  site  of  an 
interesting  town,  deriving  much  prosperity  from  its 
neighboring  coal-mines :  this  castle  was  built  by 
Lord  Hastings,  and  here  dwelt  Ivanhoe.  The  ruins 
of  the  tower,  chapel,  and  great  hall  are  objects  of 
much  interest,  and  in  the  chapel  is  the  "  finger 
pillory  "  for  the  punishment  of  those  who  were  dis- 
orderly in  church.  Staunton  Harold,  the  seat  of 
Earl  Fcrrars,  is  north  of  the  town,  while  about  nine 
miles  to  the  north-east  of  Ashby  is  Donington  Hall, 
the  palace  of  the  Marquis  of  Hastings  :  this  estate 
is  connected  with  Langley  Priory,  three  miles  south- 
ward ;  the  latter  domain  belonged  to  the  Cheslyns 
seventy  years  ago,  and  had  an  income  of  $40,000  a 
yeai'.  Between  lavish  hospitality  and  ruinous  law- 
suits the  entire  property  was  eaten  up,  and  Richard 
Cheslyn  became  practically  a  pauper ;  but  he  bore 
ill-fortune  with  good  grace,  and  maintained  his 
genial  character  to  the  last,  being  always  well  re- 
ceived at  all  the  noble  houses  where  he  formerly 
visited.     Sir   Bernard   Burke    writes    that    Cheslyn 

Vol.  I.— 9 


130  ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

''  at  dinner-parties,  at  >vhich  every  portion  of  his 
dross  was  the  cast-off  clothes  of  his  grander  friends, 
always  looked  and  was  the  gentleman ;  he  made 
no  secret  of  his  poverty  or  of  the  generous  hands 
that  liad  '  rigged  him  out.'  '  This  coat,'  he  has 
been  heard  to  say,  '  was  RadclifTe's ;  these  pants, 
Granhy's;  this  waistcoat,  Scarborough's.'  His 
cheerfulness  never  forsook  him  ;  he  was  the  victim 
of  others'  misu)anagemcnt  and  profusion,  not  of  his 
own."  John  Shakespear,  the  famous  linguist,  whoso 
talents  were  discovered  by  Lord  Moira,  who  had  him 
educated,  was  a  cowherd  on  the  Langley  estate. 
The  poor  cowherd  afterwards  bought  the  estates  for 
§700,000,  and  they  were  his  home  through  life. 

ELIZABETH    AVIDVILE    AND    LADY    JANE    GREY. 

Charnwond  Forest  is  also  associated  in  history 
witli  two  unfortunate  women.  Elizabeth  Widvilo 
was  the  wife  of  .Sir  John  (Jrey  of  (iroby,  who  lost 
his  life  and  estate  in  serving  the  House  of  Lancaster, 
leaving  Elizabeth  with  two  sons ;  for  their  sake  she 
sought  an  interview  with  King  F^dward  IV.  to  ask 
him  to  show  them  favor.  Smitten  by  her  charms, 
Edward  made  her  his  queen,  but  he  was  soon  driven 
into  exile  in  France,  and  afterwards  died,  while  her 
father  and  brother  perished  in  a  popular  tunndt. 
Her  daughter  married  King  Henry  VH.,  a  jealous 
son-in-law,  who  confined  Elizabeth  in  the  monastery 
of  Bermondsey,  where  she  died.     Bradgate  passed 


ELIZABETH  WIDVILE  AND  LADY  JANE  GREY.   131 

into  the  bauds  of  her  elder  son  bj  Sir  John  Grey  of 
Groby,    and    his    grandson    was    the    father    of  the 
second  queen  to  which  it  gave  birth,  whose  name  is 
better  known  than   that  of  Elizabeth  Widvile — the 
unfortunate   "ten-days'    queen,"  Lady    Jane    Grey. 
She  lived  the  greater  part  of  her  short  life  at  Brad- 
gate,  in  the  house  whose  ruins  still  stand  to  preserve 
her  memory.     We  are  told  by  the  quaint  historian 
P\iller  that  "  she  had  the  innocency  of   childhood, 
the   beauty   of  youth,   the    solidity    of   middle,  the 
gravity  of  old  age,  and  all  at  eighteen — the  birth  of  a 
princess,  the  learning  of  a  clerk,  the  life  of  a  saint, 
and  the  death  of  a  malefactor  for  her  parents' of- 
fences."    These  parents  worried  her  into  accepting 
the  crown — they  played  for  high  stakes  and   lost — 
and  her  father  and  father-in-law,   her  husband  and 
herself,  all  perished  on  the   scaffold.     We  are  told 
that    this    unfortunate    lady    still    haunts     Bradgate 
House,  and  on  the  last  night  of  the   dying  year  a 
j)hantom    carriage,    drawn    by    four    gray    horses, 
glides    around    the    ruins    with    her    headless   body. 
The  old  oaks  have  a  gnarled  and  stunted  appear- 
ance, tradition  ascribing  it  to  the  woodsmen  having 
lopped  off  all  the    leading  shoots   when    their  mis- 
tress perished.     The  remains  of  the  house  at  pres- 
ent are  principally  the  broken  shells  of  two  towers, 
with  portions  of  the  enclosing  walls,  partly  covered 
with  ivv. 


132    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUP:  AND  DP:SCRII>TIVE. 
LEICESTER   ABBEY    AND    CASTLE. 

The  city  of  Leicester,  which  is  now  chiefly  noted 
for  the  manufacture  of  hosiery,  was  founded  by  the 
liritons,  and  was  subsequently  the  Koman  city  of 
Katw.  Tradition  ascribes  the  foundation  of  Lei- 
cester to  King  Lear.  Many  Roman  remains  still 
exist  here,  notably  the  ancient  Jewry  wall,  which  is 
seventy-five  feet  long  and  about  twenty  feet  high, 
and  which  formed  part  of  the  town-wall,  deriving 
its  name  from  the  fact  that  it  bounded  the  quarter 
allotted  to  the  Jews.  Many  old  houses  are  found  in 
Leicester,  and  just  north  of  the  city  arc  the  ruins  of 
Leicester  Abbey.  This  noted  religious  house  was 
founded  in  the  twelfth  century,  and  stood  on  a 
meadow  watered  by  the  river  Soar.  It  was  richly 
endowed,  and  Avas  dedicated  to  the  "  \'irgin  ^Liry 
of  the  Meadows,"  but  its  chief  fame  comes  from  its 
being  the  last  residence  of  Cardinal  Wolsey.  This 
great  nian,  once  the  primate  of  England,  has  had 
liis  downfall  pathetically  described  by  Shakespeare. 
The  king  summoned  him  to  London  to  stand  trial 
for  treason,  aijd  on  his  way  Wolsey  became  so  ill 
that  he  was  obliged  to  rest  at  Leicester,  where  he 
was  met  at  the  abbey-gate  by  the  abbot  and  entire 
convent.  Aware  of  his  approaching  dissolution,  the 
fallen  cardinal  said,  "  Father  abbot,  I  have  come 
hither  to  lay  my  bones  among  you."  The  next  day 
he  died,  and  to  the  surrounding  monks,  as  the  last 


LEICESTER  ABBEY  AND  CASTLE.  133 

sacrament  was  administered,  he  said,  "If  I  liad 
served  God  as  diligently  as  I  have  done  the  king, 
He  would  not  have  given  me  over  in  my  gray  hairs." 
The  remains  were  interred  by  torchlight  before  day- 
break on  St.  Andrew's  Day,  1530,  and  to  show  the 
vanity  of  all  things  earthly  tradition  says  that  after 
the  destruction  of  the  abbey  the  stone  coffin  in 
Avhich  they  were  buried  was  used  as  a  horse-trough 
for  a  neighboring  inn.  Nothing  remains  of  the 
abbey  as  Wolsey  saw  it  excepting  the  gate  in  the 
east  wall  through  which  he  entered.  The  present 
ruins  are  fragments  of  a  house  built  afterwards. 
The  foundations  that  can  still  be  traced  show  that  it 
was  a  grand  old  building.  The  gardens  and  park 
now  raise  vegetables  for  the  Leicester  market. 

Leicester  Castle  still  exists  only  in  a  portion  of  the 
great  hall,  but  it  has  been  enlarged  and  modernized, 
and  is  now  used  for  the  county  offices.  The  castle  was 
built  after  the  Norman  Conquest  to  keep  the  towns- 
people in  check.  It  was  afterwards  a  stronghold  of 
Simon  de  Montfort,  Earl  of  Leicestei',  and  it  then 
became  part  of  the  Duchy  of  Lancaster.  The 
Dukes  of  Lancaster  restored  it,  and  lived  there  fre- 
quently in  great  pomp,  and  they  also  built  the  ad- 
joining Hospital  of  the  Newarke  (the  New  Work) 
and  a  singular  earthwork  alongside,  called  the 
Mount.  Several  parliaments  were  held  here,  but 
after  the  time  of  Edward  IV.  the  castle  fell  into 
decay.     There  are  now  few  remains  of  the  original 


134   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

castle,  excepting  part  of  the  great  liall  and  the 
Mount  or  eartliwork  of  the  keep,  ■Nvhich  is  about 
thirty  feet  high  and  one  hundred  feet  in  diameter 
upon  its  flat,  circular  top.  Nor  far  from  Leicester 
■was  fought  the  last  great  battle  of  the  "  Wars  of  the 
Roses,"  Bosworth  Field,  upon  Reduioor  Plain,  about 
two  miles  from  the  village  now  known  as  ^larkct 
Bosworth.  It  was  a  moor  at  the  time  of  the  battle 
in  1485,  overgrown  with  thistles  and  scutch-grass. 
JShakespeare  has  been  the  most  popular  historian  of 
tliis  battle,  and  the  well  where  Richard  slaked  his 
thirst  is  still  pointed  out,  with  other  localities  of  the 
scenes  of  the  famous  contest  that  decided  the  king- 
ship of  England,  Itichard  III.  giving  place  to  Rich- 
mond, who  became  Ilcnry  VII. 

THE    KDOEHILL    KATTLEFIELD. 

While  we  are  considering  this  locality  two  other 
famous  battlefields  not  far  away,  that  together  were 
decisive  of  the  fate  of  England,  must  not  be  over- 
looked. These  were  Edgehill  and  Naseby,  the 
opening  and  closing  contests  of  the  Civil  War  that 
overthrew  Charles  I.,  the  scene  of  one  being  visible 
from  tlic  other,  though  tlie  intervening  contest  spread 
almost  all  over  the  island.  The  high  ground  that 
borders  Wanvickshire  and  Northamptonshire  has 
various  roads  crossing  it,  and  the  opposing  forces 
meeting  on  these  highlands  made  them  the  scenes 
of   the   battles — practical  repetitions    of   many   hot 


THE  EDGEHILL  BATTLEFIELD.  135 

contests  there  in  earlier  years.  The  command  of 
tlie  Parliamentary  army  had  been  given  to  the  Earl 
of  Essex,  and  he  and  all  his  officers  were  proclaimed 
traitors  by  the  King.  Charles  I.  assembled  an  army 
at  Nottingham  in  lGi2  to  chastise  them,  and  it  was 
considered  an  evil  omen  that  when  the  royal  stand- 
ard was  set  up  on  the  evening  of  the  day  of  assem- 
blage, a  gale  arose  and  it  was  blown  down.  Charles 
moved  M'cst  from  Nottingham  to  Shrewsbury  to  meet 
reinforcements  from  Wales,  and  then  his  army  num- 
bered eighteen  thousand  men.  Essex  was  at 
Northampton,  and  moved  southward  to  Worcester. 
Charles  desired  to  march  to  London  to  break  up  the 
Parliament,  but  to  do  this  must  either  defeat  or  out- 
flank Essex.  He  choose  the  latter  plan,  moved  to 
Kenihvorth,  but  could  not  enter  Coventry,  because 
Lord  Bi'ooke,  who  was  afterwards  killed  at  Lichfield, 
held  it  for  the  Parliament.  Essex  left  Worcester, 
and  pressed  the  king  by  forced  marches,  but  Charles 
turned  his  flank  and  started  for  London  with  Essex 
in  pursuit.  In  October  he  reached  Edgecot,  near 
the  field  at  P]dgehill,  and  there  in  the  open  country 
he  was  astonished  to  find  a  gentleman  amusing  him- 
self with  a  pack  of  hounds.  lie  asked  who  it  was 
who  could  hunt  so  merrily  while  his  sovereign  was 
about  to  fight  for  his  crown.  ]\rr.  Richard  Shuck- 
burgh  was  accordingly  introduced,  and  the  king 
persuaded  him  to  take  home  his  hounds  and  raise 
his  tenantry.     The  next  day  he  joined  Charles  with 


13G    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

a  troop  of  horse,  and  was  knighted  on  tlie  tit-Id  of 
Edgchill. 

Charles  slept  in  the  old  house  at  Edgecot :  the 
house  has  been  superseded  by  a  newer  one,  in 
Avhieh  is  preserved  the  bed  in  which  the  king  rested 
on  the  night  of  October  22,  1G42.  At  three  o'clock 
next  morning,  Sunday,  he  was  aroused  by  a  mes- 
senger from  Prince  Rupert,  Avhose  cavalry  guarded 
the  rear,  saying  that  Essex  M'as  at  hand,  and  the 
king  could  tight  at  once  if  he  wished.  He  immedi- 
ately ordered  the  march  to  Edgehill,  a  magnificent 
situation  for  an  army  to  occupy,  for  here  the  broken 
country  of  the  Border  sinks  suddenly  down  upon 
the  level  plain  of  Central  England.  Essex's  camp- 
lires  on  that  plain  the  previous  night  had  betrayed 
his  army  to  Prince  Rupert,  while  Rupert's  horsemen, 
aj)pearing  uj)on  the  brow  of  the  hill,  told  Essex  next 
morning  that  the  king  was  at  hand.  Edgehill  is  a 
long  ridge  extending  almost  north  and  south,  Avitli 
another  ridge  jutting  out  at  right  angles  into  the 
j)lain  in  front :  thus  the  Parliamentary  troops  were 
on  low  ground,  bounded  in  front  and  on  their  left 
by  steep  hills.  On  the  southern  side  of  Edgehill 
there  had  been  cut  out  of  the  red  iron-stained  rock 
of  a  projecting  cliff  a  huge  red  horse,  as  a  memorial 
of  the  great  Earl  of  Warwick,  who  before  a  previ- 
ous battle  had  killed  his  horse  and  vowed  to  share 
the  perils  of  the  meanest  of  his  soldiers.  Both  sides 
determined    to  give    battle  j    the    Puritan    ministers 


THE  EDGEFIILL  BATTLEFIELD.  137 

passed  along  the  ranks  exhorting  the  men  to  do  their 
duty,  and  they  afterwards  referred  to  the  figure  as 
the  "  Red  Horse  of  tlie  wrath  of  the  Lord  which  did 
ride  about  furiously  to  the  ruin  of  the  enemy." 
Charles  disposed  his  army  along  the  brow  of  the 
hill,  and  could  overlook  his  foes,  stretched  out  on 
the  plain,  as  if  on  a  map,  with  the  village  of  Kine- 
ton  behind  them.  Essex  had  twelve  thousand  men 
on  a  little  piece  of  rising  ground  known  afterwards 
as  the  "  Two  Battle  Farms,"  Battledon  and  Thistle- 
don.  The  king  Avas  superior  both  in  numbers  and 
position,  with  Prince  Rupert  and  his  cavalry  on  the 
right  wing ;  Sir  Edmund  Yerney  bore  the  king's 
standard  in  the  centre,  where  his  tent  was  pitched, 
and  Lord  Lindsey  commanded ;  under  him  Avas 
General  Sir  Jacob  Astley,  whose  prayer  before  the 
battle  is  famous :  "  O  Lord,  thou  knowest  how  busy 
I  must  be  this  day  ;  if  I  forget  thee,  do  not  thou 
forget  me. — ]\Iarch  on,  boys ! "  The  king  rode 
along  in  front  of  his  troops  in  the  stately  figure  that 
is  familiar  in  Van  Dyck's  paintings — full  armor,  with 
the  ribbon  of  the  Garter  across  his  breastplate  and 
its  star  on  his  black  velvet  mantle — and  made  a 
brief  speech  of  exhortation.  The  young  princes 
Charles  and  James,  his  sons,  both  of  them  after- 
wards kings  of  England,  Avere  present  at  Edgehill, 
while  the  philosopher  Harvey,  Avho  discovered  the 
circulation  of  the  blood,  was  also  in  attendance,  and 
we    are    told  was  found    in    the  heat  of  the  battle 


138  p:nglaxd,  picruRfSQUE  and  descriptive. 

sitting    snugly    under    a    hedge    reading  a  copy  of 
Virgil. 

The  battle  did  not  begin  till  afternoon,  and  the 
mistake  the  king  made  was  in  not  waiting  for  the 
attack  in  his  strong  position  on  the  brow  of  the  hill ; 
but  his  men  were  impatient  and  in  high  spirits,  and 
he  permitted  them  to  push  forward,  meeting  the  at- 
tack halfway.  Rupert's  cavalry  upon  encountering 
the  Parliamentary  left  wing  were  aided  by  the  deser- 
tion of  part  of  the  latter's  forces,  which  threw  them 
into  confusion ;  the  wing  broke  and  fled  before  the 
troopers,  who  drove  them  with  great  slaughter  into 
the  village  of  Kineton,  and  then  fell  to  plundering 
Essex's  baggage-train.  This  caused  a  delay  which 
enabled  the  Parliamentary  reserves  to  come  up,  and 
they  drove  ]?upert  back ;  and  when  he  reached  the 
royal  lines  he  found  them  in  disorder,  with  Sir  Ed- 
mund Verney  killed  and  the  royal  standard  captured. 
Lord  Lindsey  wounded  and  captured,  and  the  king 
in  personal  danger;  but  darkness  came,  and  enabled 
the  king  to  hold  his  ground,  and  each  side  claimed 
a  victory.  The  royal  standard  was  brought  back  by 
a  courageous  Cavalier,  mIio  put  on  a  Parliamentary 
orange-colored  scarf,  rode  into  the  enemy's  lines,  and 
persuaded  the  man  who  had  it  to  let  him  carry  it. 
For  this  bold  act  he  was  knighted  by  the  king  on 
the  s])ot  and  given  a  gold  modal.  There  were  about 
fourtt'tn  hundred  killed  in  the  battle,  and  buried 
between    the    two    farm-houses    of    Battledon    and 


THE  BATTLE  OF  NASEBY.        139 

Thistleclon,  at  a  place  now  called  the  Graveyards. 
Lord  Lindsey  died  on  liis  way  to  Warwick  with  his 
captors.  Cromwell  was  not  personally  engaged  at 
Edgehill,  although  tliere  as  a  captain  of  cavalry. 
Carlyle  says  that  after  Avatching  the  tight  he  told 
Hampden  they  never  would  get  on  with  a  "  set  of 
poor  tapsters  and  town-apprentice  people  fighting 
against  men  of  honor;  to  cope  with  men  of  honor 
they  must  have  men  of  religion."  Hampden  an- 
swered, '^Itwasa  good  notion  if  it  could  be  exe- 
cuted ;"  and  Cromwell  "  set  about  executing  a  bit 
of  itj  his  share  of  it,  by  and  by." 

THE   BATTLE    OF   NASEBY. 

The  last  great  contest  of  the  Civil  War,  at  which 
the  fate  of  King  Charles  was  really  decided,  was 
fought  nearly  three  years  afterwards,  June  14,  1645, 
and  but  a  few  miles  north-east  of  Edgehill,  at  Naseby, 
standing  on  a  high  plateau  elevated  nearly  seven 
hundred  feet.  The  Parliamentary  forces  had  during 
the  interval  become  by  far  the  stronger,  and  were 
engaged  in  besieging  Chester.  The  king  and  Prince 
Rupert  in  May  left  Oxford  with  their  forces,  and 
marched  northward,  hoping  to  raise  this  siege.  The 
king  had  gone  as  far  north  as  Leicester,  when  hear- 
ing that  Lord  Fairfax  had  come  from  the  borders 
of  Wales  and  besieged  Oxford,  he  turned  about  to 
relieve  it.  His  army  was  about  ten  thousand  strong, 
and,  having  reached  Davcntry  in  June,  halted,  while 


140   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Fairfax,  leaving  Oxford,  marched  northward  to  meet 
tlie  king,  being  five  miles  east  of  him  on  June  12th. 
IJeing  weaker  than  Fairfax,  the  king  determined 
on  retreat,  and  the  movement  was  started  towards 
IMarkct  Ilarborough,  just  north  of  Xaseby.  The 
king,  a  local  tradition  says,  while  sleeping  at  Dav- 
entry  was  warned,  by  the  apparition  of  Lord  Strafford 
in  a  dream,  not  to  measure  his  strength  with  the 
Parliamentary  army.  A  second  night  the  apparition 
came,  assuring  him  that  "  if  he  kept  his  resolution 
of  fighting  he  was  undone ;"  and  it  is  added  that  the 
king  was  often  afterwards  heard  to  say  he  wished 
he  had  taken  the  warning  and  not  fought  at  Naseby. 
Fairfax,  however,  was  resolved  to  force  a  battle,  and 
pursued  the  king's  retreating  army.  On  June  13th 
he  sent  Harrison  and  Ireton  with  cavalry  to  attack 
its  rear.  That  night  the  king's  van  and  main  body 
were  at  ^larket  Harborough,  and  his  rear-guard  of 
horse  at  Naseby,  three  miles  southward.  Ireton 
about  midnight  surprised  and  captured  most  of  the 
rear-guard,  but  a  few,  escaping,  reached  the  king, 
and  roused  him  at  two  in  the  morning.  Fairfax  was 
coming  up,  and  reached  Naseby  at  five  in  the  morn- 
ing. The  king  hold  a  council  of  war  in  the  King's 
Head  Inn  at  ^larket  Ilarborough,  and  determined 
to  face  about  and  give  battle.  The  forces  met  on 
I'road  Moor,  just  north  of  Naseby  village.  Prince 
Pnpert  had  command  of  the  royal  troops,  and  Sir 
Jacob  Astloy  was  in  command  of  the  infantry.     The 


THE  BATTLE  OF  NASEBY.        141 

king  rode  along  the  lines,  inspiriting  the  men  with 
a  speech,  to  Avhich  they  gave  a  response  of  ringing 
cheers.  Cromwell  commanded  the  right  wing  of 
Fairfax's  line,  while  Ireton  led  the  left,  which  was 
opposed  by  Rupert's  cavalry.  The  advance  was 
made  by  Fairfax,  and  the  sequel  proved  that  the 
Pai'liamcntary  forces  had  improved  their  tactics. 
Kupert's  troopers,  as  usual,  broke  down  the  wing 
opposing  them,  and  then  went  to  plundering  the 
baggage-wagons  in  the  rear.  But  fortune  inclined 
the  other  way  elsewhere.  Cromwell  on  the  right 
routed  the  royal  left  wing,  and  after  an  hour's  hot 
struggle  the  royal  centre  was  completely  broken  up. 
Fairfax  captured  the  royal  standard,  and  the  king 
with  his  reserve  of  horse  made  a  gallant  attempt  to 
recover  the  day.  But  it  was  of  no  use.  Fairfax 
formed  a  second  line  of  battle,  and  the  king's  wiser 
friends,  seizing  his  horse's  bridle,  turned  him  about, 
tellinjc  him  his  charge  would  lead  to  certain  destruc- 
tion.  Then  a  panic  came,  and  the  whole  body  of 
Royalists  fled,  with  Fairfax's  cavalry  in  pursuit. 
Cromwell  and  his  '' Ironsides"  chased  the  fugitives 
almost  to  Leicester,  and  many  were  slaughtered. 
The  king  never  halted  till  he  got  to  Ashby  de  la 
Zouche,  twenty-eight  miles  from  the  battle-field,  and 
he  then  went  on  to  Lichfield.  There  were  one 
thousand  Royalists  killed  and  four  thousand  five 
hundred  captured,  Avith  almost  all  the  baggage, 
among  it  being  the  king's  correspondence,  which  by 


142   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

disclosing  his  plans  did  almost  equal  harm  with  the 
defeat.  The  prisoners  were  sent  to  London.  A 
monument  has  since  been  erected  on  the  battlefield, 
Avith  an  inscription  describing  the  contest  as  "  a  use- 
ful lesson  to  British  kings  never  to  exceed  the  bounds 
of  their  just  prerogative  ;  and  to  British  subjects, 
never  to  swerve  from  the  allegiance  due  to  their 
legitimate  monarch."  This  is  certainly  an  oracular 
utterance,  and  of  its  injunctions  the  reader  can  take 
his  choice. 

THE    LAND  OF    SHAKESPEARE. 

Close  to  the  village  of  Naseby  rises  the  Avon, 
some  of  its  springs  being  actually  within  the  village, 
where  their  waters  arc  caught  in  little  ponds  for 
watering  cattle.  The  slender  stream  of  Shakes- 
peare's river  flows  downward  from  the  plateau 
through  green  meadows,  and  thence  to  the  classic 
ground  of  Stratford  and  of  ^^'arwick.  It  was  at 
Stratford-on-Avon  that  Shakespeare  was  born  and 
died  : 

"  Here  his  first  infant  lays  sweet  Shakespeare  sung, 
Here  the  hist  accents  faltered  on  his  tongue." 

The  old  house  where  he  was  born  is  on  the  main 
street  of  the  town,  and  has  been  taken  possession  of 
by  a  Trust,  which  has  restored  it  to  its  original  con- 
dition. Its  walls  are  covered  with  the  initials  of 
visitors  ;    there   is  nothing  to  be  seen  in  the  house 


Sbahespcarc's  "toousc,  5trattorO*cn*H\>on. 


THE  LAND  OF  SHAKESPEARE.  143 

that  has  any  proved  connection  "with  Shakespeare 
excepting  his  portrait,  painted  when  he  was  about 
forty-five  years  old.  The  sign  of  the  butcher  wh.o 
had  the  building  before  the  Trust  bought  it  is  also 
exhibited,  and  states  that  "  The  immortal  Shake- 
speare was  born  in  this  house."  His  birth  took 
place  in  this  ancient  but  carefully  preserved  building 
on  April  23,  1564,  and  exactly  fifty-two  years  later, 
on  April  23,  1616,  he  died  in  another  house  near  by, 
known  as  the  "  New  Place,"  on  Chapel  Street.  Ex- 
cepting the  garden  and  a  portion  of  the  ancient 
foundations  nothing  now  remains  of  the  house  where 
Shakespeare  died ;  a  green  arbor  in  the  yard,  with 
the  initials  of  his  name  set  in  the  front  fence,  being 
all  that  marks  the  spot.  Adjoining  the  remnants  of 
this  "  New  Place  "  is  the  ''  Nash  House,"  where  the 
curator  representing  the  Shakespeare  Trust  has  his 
home.  This  building  is  also  indirectly  connected 
with  Shakespeare,  having  belonged  to  and  been 
occupied  by  Thomas  Nash,  who  married  Elizabeth 
Hall,  the  poet's  granddaughter,  who  subsequently 
became  Lady  Barnard.  The  church  of  the  Holy 
Trinity  at  Stratford  contains  Shakespeare's  grave ; 
five  flat  stones  lying  in  a  row  across  the  narrow 
chancel  cover  his  family,  the  grave  of  Anne  Hatha- 
way, his  wife,  being  next  to  that  of  the  poet ;  his 
monument  is  on  the  Avail,  and  near  it  is  the  American 
memorial  window,  representing  the  Seven  Ages  of 
Man.     In  the  chancel  upon  the  western  side,  within 


144    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQrE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

a  Grecian  niclic,  is  the  well-known  half-figure  monu- 
ment of  Shakespeare  that  has  been  so  widely  copied, 
representing  him  in  the  act  of  composition.  The 
most  injposing  building  in  Stratford  is  the  "  Shake- 
speare Memorial,"  a  large  and  highly  ornamental 
structure,  thoroughly  emblematic,  and  containing  a 
theatre.  Stratford  is  full  of  relics  of  Shakespeare 
and  statues  and  portraits  in  his  memory.  There  is  a 
life-size  statue  of  the  poet  outside  the  Town-Hall 
which  was  presented  to  the  city  by  Garrick  in  the 
last  century,  while  within  the  building  is  his  full- 
length  portrait,  also  a  present  from  Garrick,  together 
with  Gainsborough's  portrait  of  Garrick  himself. 
At  the  modest  hamlet  of  Shottery,  about  a  mile  out 
of  town,  is  the  little  cottage  where  Anne  Hathaway 
lived,  and  where  the  poet  is  said  to  have  ''  won  her 
to  his  love  ;  "  a  curious  bedstead  and  other  relics  are 
shown  at  the  cottage.  Charlecotc  House,  the  scene 
of  Shakespeare's  youthful  deer-stealing  adventure 
that  compelled  him  to  go  to  London,  is  about  four 
miles  east  of  Stratford,  near  the  Avon :  it  is  an 
ancient  mansion  of  the  Elizabethan  period.  In  the 
neighborhood  are  also  a  mineral  spring  known  as 
the  Royal  Victoria  Spa  and  some  ancient  IJritish 
intrenchraents  called  the  Dingles. 

WARWICK. 

The  renowned  castle  of  Warwick  is  upon  the  Avon, 
a   short    distance    above    Stratford.     AVarwick    was 


Hnne  "toatbawaip's  Cottaoe,  Sbottcrt?. 


WARWICK.  145 

founded  by  tlic  Britons  at  a  very  early  period,  the 
legend,  in  fact,  going  back  for  its  foundation  to 
the  "ancient  king  (Vnibelline  in  the  year  one;" 
and  it  is  believed  to  be  as  old  in  some  parts  as  the 
Christian  era  ;  it  was  afterwards  held  as  a  Christian 
stronghold  against  the  Danes.  Lady  Ethelfleda, 
daughter  of  King  Alfred,  built  the  donjon-keep  upon 
an  artificial  mound  of  earth  that  can  still  be  traced 
in  the  castle  grounds.  The  most  ancient  part  of  the 
present  castle  Avas  erected  in  the  reign  of  Edward 
the  Confessor,  and  in  William  the  Conqueror's  time 
it  received  considerable  additions,  and  he  created 
the  first  Earl  of  Warwick.  It  was  a  great  strong- 
hold in  the  subsequent  Avars,  and  an  heiress  brought 
the  castle  to  Eichard  Keville,  Avho  assumed  the  title 
in  right  of  his  wife,  and  was  the  famous  Warwick, 
"  the  King-maker."  xVfter  many  changes  it  came  to 
the  Grevilles,  who  are  now  the  Earls  of  ^A'arwick. 
This  castle  is  one  of  the  best  specimens  of  the 
feudal  stronghold  remaining  in  England,  and  occupies 
a  lovely  position  on  the  river-bank,  being  built  on  a 
rock  about  forty  feet  high  ;  its  modern  apartments 
contain  a  rich  museum  filled  with  almost  priceless 
relics  of  the  olden  time.  Here  are  also  valuable 
paintings  and  other  works  of  art,  among  them  Van 
Dyck's  portrait  of  Charles  I.  and  many  masterpieces 
of  Rembrandt,  Paul  Veronese,  Leonardo  da  Vinci, 
Rubens,  Holbein,  and  Salvator  Eosa.  In  December, 
1871,  the  great  hall  and  suite  of  private  apartments 
Vol.  I.— 10 


146    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

at  Warwick  were  burnt,  but  the  valuable  contents 
were  almost  all  saved  with  little  injurv.  The  castle 
was  restored  by  a  public  subscription.  It  is  built 
around  a  large  oval-shaped  court  ;  the  gate-house 
tower  is  flanked  by  embattled  walls  covered  with 
ivy,  and  having  at  either  extremity  Casar's  Tower 
and  Guy's  Tower;  the  inner  court  is  bounded  by 
ramparts  and  turrets,  and  lias  on  one  side  an  arti- 
ficial mound  surmounted  by  an  ancient  tower.  From 
the  modernized  rooms  of  the  castle,  where  the  family 
live  and  the  museum  is  located,  and  which  extend  in 
a  suite  for  three  hundred  and  fifty  feet,  all  the 
windows  look  out  upon  beautiful  views ;  many  of 
these  rooms  are  hung  with  tapestry.  Caisar's 
Tower,  believed  to  be  the  most  ancient  part  of  the 
castle  and  as  old  as  the  Norman  Conquest,  is  one 
hundred  and  seventy-four  feet  high  ;  (Juy's  Tower, 
Avhich  was  built  in  1304,  has  solid  walls  ten  feet 
thick  and  is  one  hundred  and  twenty-eight  feet  high, 
disclosing  fine  views  from  tlie  turrets.  The  grounds 
are  extensive,  and  the  magnificent  marble  "  War- 
wick Vase,"  brought  from  the  Emperor  Adiian's 
villa  at  Tivoli  in  Italy,  is  kept  in  a  special  green- 
house, being  one  of  the  most  completely  perfect  and 
beautiful  specimens  of  ancient  sculpture  known. 
.St.  Mary's  Church  at  Warwick  is  a  fine  building, 
which  in  the  early  part  of  the  last  century-  replaced 
the  original  collegiate  church  of  St.  Mary,  an 
edifice  that  had  unfortunately  been  burnt.     Thomas 


WARWICK.  147 

Beauchamp,  one  of  the  earlier  Earls  of  Warwick, 
Avas  the  founder  of  this  church,  and  his  monument 
with  recumbent  effigy  is  in  the  middle  of  the  choir. 
The  Beauchamp  Chapel,  over  four  hundred  years 
old,  is  a  beautiful  relic  of  the  original  church  still 
remaining,  and  stands  on  the  southern  side  of  the 
new  building.  The  whole  of  this  portion  of  War- 
wickshire is  underlaid  by  medicinal  waters,  and  the 
baths  of  Leamington  are  in  the  valley  of  the  little 
river  Leam,  a  short  distance  north-east  of  the  castle, 
its  Jephson  Gardens,  a  lovely  park,  commemorating 
one  of  its  most  benevolent  patrons. 

Warwick  Castle,  like  all  the  others,  has  its 
romance,  and  this  centres  in  the  famous  giant, 
Guy  of  Warwick,  who  lived  nearly  a  thousand 
years  ago,  and  was  nine  feet  high.  His  staff  and 
club  and  sword  and  armor  are  exhibited  in  a  room 
adjoining  Ca?sar's  Tower ;  and  here  also  is  Guy's 
famous  porridge-pot,  a  huge  bronze  caldron  holding 
over  a  hundred  gallons,  Avhich  is  used  as  a  punch- 
boAvl  Avhencvcr  there  are  rejoicings  in  the  castle. 
There  is  nothing  fabulous  about  the  arms  or  the 
porridge-pot,  but  there  is  a  good  deal  that  is  doubt- 
ful about  the  giant  Guy  himself  and  the  huge  dun 
cow  that  once  upon  a  time  he  slew,  one  of  whose 
ribs,  measuring  over  six  feet  long,  is  shown  at  Guy's 
Cliff.  This  cliff  is  where  the  redoubtable  Guy 
retired  to  a  cave  as  a  hermit  after  championing  the 
cause  of  England  in  single  combat  against  a  giant 


148   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

cliampion  of  the  Danes,  and  is  about  a  mile  from 
AVarwick.  It  is  said  that  Guv,  Avho  had  been  in 
tlio  Crusades  and  returned  home  from  the  Holy 
Land,  daily  reeeived  alms  froin  his  wife,  the 
Countess  Fcliee,  who  did  not  recognize  her  husband 
in  the  grizzled  and  bearded  old  recluse,  but  before 
Ids  death  he  revealed  lumself  to  her,  and  the  two 
were  buried  in  the  cave  in  Guy's  Cliff.  It  is  a 
picturesque  spot,  and  a  chantry  has  been  founded 
there,  while  for  many  years  a  rude  statue  of  the 
giant  Guy  stood  on  the  cliff,  where  the  chisel  had 
cut  it  out  of  the  solid  rock.  The  town  of  Warwick 
is  full  of  old  gabled  houses  and  of  curious  relics  of 
the  time  of  the  ''King-maker"  and  of  the  famous 
Earl  of  Leicester,  Avho  in  Elizabeth's  time  founded 
there  the  Leicester  Hospital,  where  especial  prefer- 
ence is  given  to  pensioners  who  have  been  wounded 
in  the  wars.  It  is  a  fine  old  house,  with  its  chapel, 
which  has  been  restored  nearly  in  the  old  form, 
stretching  over  the  pathway,  and  a  flight  of  steps 
leading  up  to  the  promenade  around  it.  The  hospital 
buildings  are  constructed  around  an  open  quadrangle, 
and  upon  the  quaint  black  and  white  building  are 
some  fine  antique  carvings.  The  old  Malt-Shovel 
Inn  is  a  rather  decayed  structiu-e  in  Warwick, 
with  its  ancient  porch  ])rotruding  over  the  street, 
while  some  of  the  buildings,  deranged  in  the  lower 
stories  by  the  acute  angles  at  which  the  streets 
cross,  have  oblique  gables  above  stairs  that  enabled 


Marwich  Castle,  trom  tbc  Uvon, 


KENILWORTH.  149 

the  builders  to  construct  the  upper  rooms  square. 
This  is  a  style  of  construction  peculiar  to  Warwick, 
and  adds  to  the  oddity  of  this  somnolent  old  town, 
that  seems  to  have  been  practically  asleep  for  cen- 
turies. 

KENILWORTH. 

About  five  miles  from  "Warwick  are  the  ruins  of 
Kcnilworth  Castle,  the  magnificent  home  of  the  Earl 
of  Leicester,  which  Scott  has  immortalized.  Geof- 
frey de  Clinton  in  the  reign  of  Henry  I.  built  a 
strong  castle  and  founded  a  monastery  here.  It  Avas 
afterwards  the  castle  of  Simon  de  Montfort,  and  his 
son  was  besieged  in  it  for  several  months,  ultimately 
surrendering,  when  the  king  bestowed  it  on  his 
youngest  son,  Edward,  Earl  of  Lancaster  and  Lei- 
cester. Edward  II.,  Avhen  taken  prisoner  in  Wales, 
was  brought  to  Kenilworth,  and  signed  his  abdication 
in  the  castle,  being  afterwards  murdered  in  Berkeley 
Castle.  Then  it  came  to  John  of  Gaunt,  and  in  the 
Wars  of  the  Roses  was  alternately  held  by  the 
partisans  of  each  side.  Finally,  Queen  Elizabeth 
bestowed  it  upon  her  ambitious  favorite,  Dudley, 
Earl  of  Leicester,  who  made  splendid  additions  to 
the  buildings.  It  Avas  here  that  Leicester  gave  the 
magnificent  entertainment  to  Queen  Elizabeth  which 
Avas  a  series  of  pageants  lasting  se\'enteen  days,  and 
cost  $5000  a  day — a  \'cry  large  sum  for  those 
times.  The  queen  Avas  attended  by  thirty-one 
barons  and  a  liost  of  retainers,  and  four  hundred 


150    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

servants,  who  were  all  lodged  in  the  fortress.  The 
attendants  were  clothed  in  velvet,  and  the  party 
drank  sixteen  hogsheads  of  wine  and  forty  hogs- 
heads of  beer  every  day,  while  to  feed  them  ten 
oxen  were  killed  every  morning.  There  was  a  suc- 
cession of  plays  and  amusements  provided,  including 
the  Coventry  play  of  ''  Hock  Tuesday "  and  the 
"  Country  Bridal,"  with  bull-  and  bear-baiting,  of 
which  the  queen  was  very  fond.  Scott  has  given 
a  gorgeous  description  of  these  fetes  and  of  the 
great  castle,  and  upon  these  and  the  tragic  fate  of 
Amy  Robsart  has  founded  his  romance  of  Kcnil- 
tvorth.  The  display  and  hospitality  of  the  Earl  of 
Leicester  were  intended  to  pave  the  way  to  marriage, 
but  the  wily  queen  was  not  to  be  thus  entrapped. 
The  castle  is  now  part  of  the  Earl  of  Clarendon's 
estate,  and  he  has  taken  great  pains  to  preserve  the 
famous  ruins.  The  great  hall,  ninety  feet  long,  still 
retains  several  of  its  Gothic  windows,  and  some  of 
the  towers  rise  seventy  feet  high.  These  ivy- 
maVitled  ruins  stand  upon  an  elevated  rocky  site 
commanding  a  fine  prospect,  and  their  chief  present 
use  is  as  a  ])icnic-ground  for  tourists.  Not  far  .iway 
are  the  ruins  of  the  priory,  which  was  founded  at 
the  same  time  as  the  castle.  A  dismantled  gate- 
house with  some  rather  extensive  foundations  is 
all  that  remains.  In  a  little  church  near  by  the 
matins  and  the  curfew  are  still  tolled,  one  of  the 
bells    used   having   belonged   to   the    priory.     Few 


Iccnilwortb  Castle, 


BIRMINGHAM.  151 

English  ruins  liave  more  romance  attached  to  them 
than  those  of  Kenihvorth,  for  the  graphic  pen  of 
the  best  story-teller  of  Britain  has  interwoven  them 
into  one  of  his  best  romances,  and  has  thiis  given  an 
idea  of  the  splendors  as  "svell  as  the  dark  deeds  of 
the  Elizabethan  era  that  will  exist  as  long  as  the 
language  endures. 

.   BIRMINGHAM. 

Thus  far  we  have  mainly  written  of  the  rural  and 
historical  attractions  of  Warwickshire,  but  its  great 
city  must  not  be  passed  by  without  notice.  The 
"  Homestead  of  the  Sons  of  Beorm "  the  Saxon, 
while  rising  from  small  beginnings,  has  had  a  pro- 
digiously rapid  growth  since  the  coal,  iron,  and  rail- 
ways have  so  greatly  swollen  the  Avealth  and  popula- 
tion of  manufacturing  England.  It  was  at  the  time 
of  the  Conquest  the  manor  of  Bermingeham,  or,  as 
the  Midland  English  prefer  to  pronounce  it,  '^  Brum- 
magem." It  was  held  for  many  years  by  a  family  of 
the  same  name,  and  had  an  uneventful  history  till 
the  townsfolk  ranged  themselves  on  the  side  of 
Parliament  in  the  Civil  War,  in  revenge  for  which 
Prince  Bupert  captured  and  pillaged  Birmingham  : 
it  Avas  then  a  market-town,  built  mostly  along  one 
street,  and  noted  for  its  smiths  and  cutlers,  Avho  were 
kept  busy  forging  pikes  and  swords  for  the  king's 
opponents.  The  great  growth  of  the  city  has  been 
in    the    present   century,    when   the    population   has 


152    KN(iLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

trebled,  and  now  exceeds  five  hundred  thousand. 
The  main  features  of  its  history  relate  to  trade  and 
manufactures,  otherwise  its  annals  are  comparatively 
commonplace.  There  is  little  remaining  of  the  old 
town,  almost  all  the  structures  being  modern.  St. 
^Martin's  Church,  replacing  the  original  parish 
church,  or  "  Mother  Church,"  as  it  is  called,  is  a 
fine  modern  structure,  and  contains  some  interesting 
monuments  of  the  Bermingeham  family.  There  are 
several  other  attractive  churches,  including  the  Uni- 
tarian Church  of  the  ^lessiah,  which  is  supported  on 
massive  arches,  for  it  is  built  over  a  canal  on  which 
are  several  locks :  this  has  given  cause  for  a  favorite 
Birmingham  witticism  : 

"St.  Peter's  world-wide  diocese 
llc-iia  on  tlie  power  of  the  keys; 
Our  church,  a  trifle  heterodox, 
We'll  rest  on  a  'power  of  locks.'" 

Birmingham  has  many  fine  public  and  private 
buildings  and  some  attractive  streets,  though  much 
of  the  town  is  made  up  of  narrow  lanes  and  dingy 
houses,  with  huge  factories  in  every  direction. 
There  are  several  small  parks,  the  gifts  of  opulent 
residents,  notably  Aston  Hall.  This  was  formerly 
the  residence  of  the  Ilolte  family,  and  the  fine  old 
mansion  which  still  stands  in  the  grounds  was  built 
by  Sir  Thomas  Ilolte  in  the  reign  of  James  I. 
Charles  T.  is  said  to  have  slept  here  for  two  nights 
before  the   battle  of  Kdgehill,  for  which   offence  the 


BIRMINGHAM.  153 

house  was  cannonaded  by  the  Puritans  and  its 
owners  fined.  The  grounds,  covering  about  forty- 
two  acres,  are  now  a  park,  and  a  picturesque 
little  church  has  been  built  near  the  mansion. 
Some  of  the  factories  of  this  metropolis  of  hard- 
ware are  fine  structures,  but  when  their  product  is 
spoken  of,  ^'  ]3rummagcm  "  is  sometimes  quoted  as 
synonymous  for  showy  sham.  Here  they  are  said 
to  make  gods  for  the  heathen  and  antiquities  of  the 
Pharaoh  age  for  Egypt,  with  all  sorts  of  relics  for 
all  kinds  of  battlefields.  But  Birmingham  neverthe- 
less has  a  reputation  for  more  solid  wares.  Its 
people  are  the  true  descendants  of  Tubal  Cain,  for 
one  of  its  historians  attractively  says  that  the  Arab 
eats  with  a  Birmingham  spoon  ;  the  Egyptian  takes 
his  bowl  of  sherbet  from  a  Birmingham  tray ;  the 
American  Indian  used  to  shoot  a  Birmingham  rifle ; 
the  Hindoo  dines  on  Birmingham  plate  and  sees  by 
the  light  of  a  Birmingham  lamp;  the  South  Ameri- 
can horsemen  wear  Birmingham  spurs  and  gaudily 
dock  their  jackets  with  Birmingham  buttons  ;  the 
West  Indian  cuts  down  the  sugar-cane  with  Birming- 
ham hatchets  and  presses  the  juice  into  Birmingham 
vats  and  coolers  ;  the  German  liglits  liis  pipe  on  a 
])irmingham  tinder-box ;  the  emigrant  cooks  his 
dinner  in  a  Birmingham  saucepan  over  a  Birming- 
ham stove  ;  and  so  on  ad  infinitum.  A  century  ago 
this  famous  town  Avas  known  as  the  ^*  toy-shop  of 
Europe."    Its  glass-Avorkcrs  stand  at  the  head  of  their 


154   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

profession,  and  liere  are  made  the  great  lightliouse 
lenses  and  tlie  finest  stained  glass  to  be  found  in 
Knglish  -windows.  The  ]\Iessrs.  Elkington,  whose 
reputation  is  worldwide,  here  invented  the  process 
of  electro-plating.  It  is  a  great  place  for  jewelry 
and  is  the  champion  emporium  for  buttons.  It  is  also 
the  great  English  workshop^ for  swords,  guns,  and 
other  small-arms,  and  here  are  turned  out  by  the 
million  Gillott's  steel  pens.  Over  all  these  indus- 
tries presides  the  magnificent  Town-IIall,  a  Grecian 
temple  standing  upon  an  arcade  basement,  and  built 
of  hard  limestone  brouglit  from  the  island  of  Angle- 
sea.  The  interior  is  chiefly  a  vast  assembly-room, 
where  concerts  are  given  and  political  meetings  held, 
the  latter  usually  being  the  more  exciting,  for  we  are 
told  that  when  party  feeling  runs  high  some  of  the 
Birmingham  folk  "  are  a  little  too  fond  of  preferring 
force  to  argument."  But,  although  famed  for  its 
Kadical  i)olitics  and  tlie  introduction  of  tiie  ''  caucus" 
into  England,  liirmingham  will  always  be  chiefly 
known  by  its  manufactures,  and  these  will  recall  its 
illustrious  inventors,  Boulton  and  Watt.  Their  fac- 
tory was  at  Soho,  just  north  of  the  town.  Here  Watt 
brought  the  steam-engine  to  perfection,  here  gas  was 
first  used,  plating  was  perfected,  and  myriads  of  in- 
ventions were  developed.  Watt's  house  is  still  seen 
in  the  suburb  of  Heath  field,  which  contains  the 
"■  classic  garret "  he  used  for  a  workshop.  "  The 
labors  of  Bouhon  and  Watt  at  JSoho,"  says  the  his- 


FOTIIERINGIIAY.  155 

torian  Langford,  '^  changed  the  commercial  aspects 
of  the  world."  Their  history  is,  however,  but  an 
ej)itome  of  the  wonderful  story  of  this  great  city  of 
glass-  and  metal-workers,  whose  products  supply 
almost  the  entire  globe. 

FOTIIERINGHAY. 

In  our  journey  through  Midland  England  we  have 
paused  at  many  of  the  prison  houses  of  Mary  Queen 
of  Scots.  In  Northamptonshire,  near  Elton,  are  the 
remains  of  the  foundations  of  the  castle  of  Eothering- 
hay,  out  in  a  field,  Avith  the  mound  of  the  keep 
rising  in  front  of  them  ;  this  was  the  unfortunate 
queen's  last  prison.  It  was  a  noted  castle,  dating 
from  the  twelfth  century,  and  had  been  a  principal 
residence  of  the  Plantagenets.  Here  ]\Iary  Avas  tried 
and  beheaded,  February  8,  1587.  She  is  said  to 
have  borne  up  under  her  great  afflictions  witli  mar- 
vellous courage.  Conducted  to  the  scaffold  after  tak- 
ing leave  of  all,  she  made  a  short  address,  declaring 
that  she  had  never  souglit  the  life  of  her  cousin 
Elizabeth — that  she  Avas  queen-born,  not  subject  to 
the  laws,  and  forgiving  all.  Her  attendants  in  tears 
then  assisted  her  to  remoA'e  her  clothing,  but  she 
firmly  said,  "  Instead  of  Aveeping,  rejoice  ;  I  am  very 
happy  to  leave  this  Avorld  in  so  good  a  cause."  Then 
she  knelt,  and  after  praying  stretched  out  her  neck 
to  the  executioner,  imagining  that  he  Avould  strike 
off  her  head  Avhile  in  an  upright  posture  and  Avith 


156    ICXGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

tlic  sworil,  as  in  France ;  thcj  told  licr  of  her  mis- 
take, and  without  ceasing  to  pray  she  laid  her  head 
on  the  block.  There  was  a  universal  feeling  of  com- 
j)assion,  even  the  headsman  himself  being  so  moved 
that  he  <lid  his  work  with  unsteady  hand,  the  axe 
falling  on  the  back  of  her  head  and  wounding  her ; 
but  she  did  not  move  nor  utter  a  complaint,  and, 
repeating  the  blow,  he  struck  off  her  head,  which  he 
held  up,  saying,  "God  save  Queen  Elizabeth!" 
Her  lips  moved  for  some  time  after  death,  and  it  is 
said  few  recognized  her  features,  they  were  so  much 
changed.  Her  son,  King  James  I.,  destroyed  the 
castle. 

IIOLMUY    HOUSE. 

Also  in  Northamptonshire  is  Holmby  House, 
where  King  (,'harles  I.  was  captured  by  the  Parlia- 
mentary army  previous  to  his  trial.  It  was  built  by 
Sir  Christopher  Hatton  in  Queen  P^lizabeth's  time, 
but  only  the  gates  and  some  outbuildings  remain. 
After  the  battle  of  Naseby  the  king  surrendered 
himself  to  the  Scots,  and  they,  through  an  arrange- 
ment with  the  English  Parliament,  conducted  him  to 
Holmby  House,  where  he  maintained  something  of 
sovereign  state,  though  under  the  surveillance  of  the 
Parliamentary  commissioners.  He  d(;voted  his  time 
to  receiving  visitors,  the  bowling-green,  and  the 
chess-table.  This  continued  for  some  months,  when 
a  struggle  began  between  the  army  and  the  Parlia- 
ment to  decide  whose  captive  he  was.      The  army 


HOLMBY  HOUSE.  157 

subsequently,  by  a  plot,  got  possession  of  Holinby, 
and,  practically  making  prisoners  of  the  garrison  and 
the  commissioners  of  Parliament,  they  abducted  the 
king  and  took  him  to  a  house  near  Huntingdon. 
Fairfax  sent  two  regiments  of  troops  thither  to  escort 
him  back  to  Hohnby,  but  he  had  been  treated  Avitli 
great  courtesy  and  declined  to  go  back.  Thus  by 
his  own  practical  consent  the  king  was  taken  posses- 
sion of  by  Cromwell,  Fairfax,  and  Ireton,  who  were 
in  command,  although  they  denied  it,  and  put  the 
"whole  blame  on  one  Cornet  Joyce,  who  was  in  com- 
mand of  the  detachment  of  troops  that  took  posses- 
sion of  Holmby.  The  king  was  ultimately  taken  to 
London,  tried,  and  executed  in  Whitehall.  At  Ashby 
St.  Leger,  near  Daventry,  in  Northamptonshire,  is 
the  gate-house  of  the  ancient  manor  of  the  Catesbys, 
of  Avhom  Robert  Catesby  was  the  contriver  of  the 
Gunpowder  Plot.  The  thirteen  conspirators  who 
framed  the  plot  met  in  a  room  over  the  gateway 
which  the  villagers  call  the  "  Plot-room,"  and  here 
Guy  Fawkes  Avas  equipped  for  his  task,  which  so 
alarmed  the  kingdom  that  to  this  day  the  cellars  of 
the  Parliament  Houses  at  Westminster  are  searched 
before  the  session  begins  for  fear  a  new  plot  may 
have  been  hatched,  while  the  anniversary  is  kept 
as  a  solemn  holiday  in  London.  The  lantern 
used  by  Guy  Fawkes  is  still  preserved  in  the 
Oxford  Museum,  having  been  given  to  the  Uni- 
versity in  1641. 


158  ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

BEDFORD    CASTLE. 

One  of  the  most  ancient  of  the  strongholds  of 
Midland  England  was  the  Bedicanford  of  the  Saxons, 
■where  contests  took  place  between  them  and  the 
Britons  as  early  as  the  sixth  century.  It  stood  in  a 
fertile  valley  on  the  Ouse,  and  is  also  mentioned  in 
the  subsequent  contests  with  the  Danes,  having  been 
destroyed  by  them  in  the  eleventh  century.  Finally, 
AVilliam  Rufus  built  a  castle  there,  and  its  name 
gradually  changed  to  Bedford.  It  was  for  years 
subject  to  every  storm  of  civil  war — was  taken  and 
retaken,  the  most  famous  siege  lasting  sixty  days, 
when  Henry  III.  personally  conducted  the  opera- 
tions, being  attended  by  the  Archbishop  of  Canter- 
l)ury  and  the  chief  peers  of  the  realm  :  this  was  in 
1224,  and  the  most  ingenious  engines  of  war  were 
used  to  batter  down  the  castle-walls,  which  till  then 
had  been  regarded  as  impregnable.  The  stronghold 
was  ultimately  captured,  chiefly  through  the  agency 
of  a  lofty  wooden  castle  higher  than  the  walls, 
which  gave  an  opportunity  of  seeing  all  that  passed 
within.  The  governor  of  the  castle,  twenty-four 
knights,  and  eighty  soldiers,  making  most  of  the 
garrison,  were  hanged.  King  Henry  then  dis- 
mantled it  and  filled  up  the  ditches,  so  as  to  "uproot 
this  nursery  of  sedition."  The  ruins  lasted  some 
time  afterward,  but  now  only  the  site  is  known, 
located  ah^igside  the  river  Ouse,  which  runs  through 


JOHN  BUNYAN.  159 

the  city  of  Bedford.  This  town  is  of  great  interest, 
though,  as  Camden  wrote  two  centuries  ago,  it  is 
more  eminent  for  its  '' pleasant  situation  and  an- 
tiquity than  anything  of  beauty  and  stateliness."  Its 
neighborhood  has  been  a  noted  mine  for  antiquities, 
disclosing  remains  of  ancient  races  of  men  and  of 
almost  pre-historic  animals  of  the  Bronze  and  Iron 
Ages.  The  town  lies  rather  low  on  the  river,  with  a 
handsome  bridge  connecting  the  two  parts,  and 
pretty  gardens  fringing  each  shore.  This  bridge  is 
a  modern  structure,  having  succeeded  the  ''  old 
bridge,"  which  stood  there  several  centuries  with  a 
gate-house  at  either  end,  in  the  larger  of  which  was 
the  old  jail,  that  had  for  its  most  distinguished 
occupant  that  sturdy  townsman  of  Bedford,  John 
Bunyan.  The  castle-mound,  which  is  all  that  is  left, 
and  on  which  once  stood  the  keep,  is  on  the  river- 
shore  just  beloAv  the  bridge,  and  is  now  used  for  a 
bowling-green  in  the  garden  of  the  chief  hotel. 
The  memorials  of  the  author  of  the  Pilgriui's  Prog- 
ress, first  a  prisoner  and  then  a  minister  of  the  gos- 
pel in  Bedford,  are  probably  the  most  prized  remains 
of  ancient  days  that  Bedford  has,  though  they  are 
becoming  scarce. 

JOHN   BUNYAN. 

Elstow,  a  village  about  one  mile  south  of  Bedford, 
was  Bunyan's  birthplace.  The  house  is  still  pointed 
out,  though  a  new  front  has  been  put  into  it,  and  it 


160    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

is  a  very  small  biiiklinc^,  suitable  to  the  tinker's 
humble  estate.  The  viilage-grcen  where  he  ])layeil 
is  near  by,  alongside  the  churchyard  wall ;  the 
church,  which  has  been  little  changed,  stands  on  the 
farther  side  of  the  yard,  with  a  massive  tower  at  the 
north-western  angle,  looking  more  like  a  fortress 
than  a  religious  editice.  The  bells  are  still  there 
which  Bunyan  used  to  ring,  and  they  also  point  out 
"  Bunyan's  Pew "  inside,  though  the  regularity  of 
his  attendance  is  not  vouched  for,  as  he  says  "  ab- 
senting himself  from  church "  Avas  one  of  his  of- 
fences during  the  greater  part  of  his  life.  He 
married  early  and  in  poor  circumstances,  the  young 
couple  "  not  having  so  mucii  household  stuff  as  a 
disli  or  spoon  betwixt  them  both,"  though  he  con- 
sidered it  among  his  mercies  that  he  was  led  "  to 
light  upon  a  wife  of  godly  parentage."  He  says 
that  a  marked  change  in  his  mental  condition  sud- 
denly began  while  playing  a  game  of  *' tip-cat"  one 
Sunday  afternoon  on  the  village-green,  liaving 
listened  in  the  morning  to  a  scrnuui  upon  Sabbath- 
breaking.  His  conscience  smote  him;  he  aban- 
doned the  game,  leaving  his  cat  upon  the  ground, 
and  then  began  his  great  spiritual  struggle.  Ho 
joined  the  I^aptists,  and  began  preaching,  for  at 
length,  after  many  tribulations,  he  says,  "  the 
biu-den  fell  from  off  his  back."  He  was  persecuted, 
and  coMMiiittrd  to  Bedford  jail,  where  he  remained 
(with    short    intervals    of   parole)  for    about    twelve 


JOHN  BUN Y AN.  161 

years.  His  ofFeiiec  is  described  in  tlie  indictment  as 
"  dcvilislily  and  perniciously  abstaining  from  coming 
to  church  to  hear  divine  service  and  for  beinj;  a 
common  uphohler  of  several  unlawful  meetings  and 
conventicles  to  the  great  disturbance  and  distraction 
of  the  good  subjects  of  the  kingdom,  contrary  to  the 
law  of  our  Sovereign  Lord  the  King."  Here  he 
wrote,  in  1675-76,  what  Macaulay  declares  to  be 
incomparably  the  finest  allegory  in  the  English  lan- 
guage— the  Pilgrim'' s  Progress.  He  Avas  a  voluminous 
author,  having  written  some  sixty  tracts  and  books. 
Finally  pardoned  in  1672,  he  became  pastor  of  the 
Bedford  meeting-house,  and  afterwards  escaped 
molestation  ;  the  Bunyan  Meeting  now  occupies  the 
site  of  this  building.  He  preached  in  all  parts  of 
the  kingdom,  especially  in  London,  Avhere  he  died  at 
the  age  of  sixty,  having  caught  cold  in  a  heavy 
storm  while  going  upon  an  errand  of  mercy  in  1688. 
His  great  work  will  live  as  long  as  the  Anglo-Saxon 
race  endures.  "  That  wonderful  book,"  writes  Ma- 
caulay, ''  while  it  obtains  admiration  from  the  most 
fastidious  critics,  is  loved  by  those  who  arc  too 
simple  to  admire  it.  .  .  .  Every  reader  knows  the 
strait  and  narrow  path  as  Avell  as  he  knows  a  road  in 
which  he  has  gone  backward  and  forward  a  hundred 
times.  This  is  the  highest  miracle  of  genius,  that 
things  which  are  not  should  be  as  though  they  Avere 
— that  the  imaginations  of  one  mind  should  become 

Vol.  I.— 11 


162   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

the  personal  recollections  of  another ;  and  this  mir- 
acle the  tinker  has  wrought." 


WOBURN   ABBEY. 

The  county  of  Bedford  gives  the  title  to  the  duke- 
dom held  by  the  head  of  the  great  family  of  Russell, 
and  Herbrand  Arthur  Kussell,  the  Duke  of  Bed- 
ford, has  his  residence  at  the  magnificent  estate 
of  Woburn  Abbey.  It  is  about  forty  miles  from 
London,  and  on  the  Buckinghamshire  border.  Here 
the  Cistercians  founded  an  abbey  in  the  twelfth  cen- 
tury, Avhich  continued  until  the  dissolution  of  the 
religious  houses  by  Henry  VIII.,  and  the  last  abbot, 
Kobert  Hobs,  was  executed  for  denying  the  king's 
religious  supremacy,  the  tree  on  which  he  was 
hanged  being  still  carefully  preserved  in  Woburn 
Park.  The  abbey  and  its  domain  were  granted  Vjy 
the  youthful  king  Edward  VI.  to  John  Kussell,  first 
Earl  of  Bedford,  under  circumstances  Avhich  show 
how  fortune  sometimes  smiles  upon  mortals.  Bus- 
sell,  who  had  been  abroad  and  was  an  accomplished 
linguist,  had  in  1506  returned,  and  was  living  with 
his  father  in  Dorsetshire  at  Berwick,  near  the  sea- 
coast.  Soon  afterwards  in  a  tempest  three  foreign 
vessels  sought  refuge  in  the  neighboring  port  of 
Weymouth.  On  one  of  them  was  the  Austrian 
archduke  Philip,  son-in-law  of  Ferdinand  and  Isa- 
bella, who  was  on  his  way  to  Spain.  The  governor 
took  the  archduke  to  his  castle,  and  invited  young 


WOBURX  ABBEY.  163 

Mr.  Russell  to  act  as  interpreter.  The  archduke 
was  so  delighted  with  him  that  he  subsequently  in- 
vited Russell  to  accompany  him  on  a  visit  to  King 
Henry  VII.  at  Windsor.  The  king  was  also  im- 
pressed with  Russell,  and  appointed  him  to  an  office 
in  the  court,  and  three  years  afterwards,  Henry 
VIII.  becoming  king,  Russell  was  entrusted  with 
m?iny  important  duties,  and  was  raised  to  the  peer- 
age as  Baron  Russell.  He  enjoyed  the  king's  favor 
throughout  his  long  reign,  and  was  made  one  of  the 
councillors  of  his  son,  Edward  VI.,  besides  holding 
other  high  offices,  and  when  the  youthful  prince 
ascended  the  throne  he  made  Russell  an  earl  and 
gave  him  the  magnificent  domain  of  Woburn  Abbey. 
He  also  enjoyed  the  favor  of  Queen  Mary,  and 
escorted  her  husband  Philip  from  Spain,  this  being 
his  last  public  act.  Dying  in  1555,  he  was  buried 
in  the  little  parish  church  of  Chenies,  near  Woburn, 
where  all  the  Russells  rest  from  his  time  until  now. 
He  thus  founded  one  of  the  greatest  houses  of  Eng- 
land, which  has  furnished  political  leaders  from  that 
day  till  now,  for  the  Dukes  of  Bedford  and  Devon- 
shire are  heads  of  the  Whig  and  Liberal  Unionist 
party,  and  the  late  Lord  John  Russell  (afterwards 
an  earl)  was  the  uncle  of  the  present  duke. 

Woburn  Abbey  remained  until  the  last  century 
much  in  its  original  condition,  but  in  1747  changes 
began  which  have  since  been  continued,  and  have 
resulted  in  the  construction  of  the  ducal  palace  now 


164   ENGLAND,   riCTURESQUE  AND  DESCRirXIVE. 

adorning  the  spot.  The  mansion  is  a  quadrangle 
enclosing  a  spacious  court,  the  chief  front  being 
towards  the  west  and  extending  two  hundred  and 
thirty  feet.  It  is  an  Ionic  building  with  a  rustic 
basement,  and  within  are  spacious  state-apartments 
and  ample  accommodations  for  the  family.  The 
rooms  are  filled  with  the  best  collection  of  portraits 
of  great  historical  characters  in  the  kingdom,  and 
most  of  them  are  by  famous  artists.  They  include 
all  the  Earls  and  Dukes  of  Bedford,  with  their 
wives  and  famous  relatives,  and  also  the  Leicesters, 
Essexes,  and  Sydncys  of  Queen  Elizabeth's  reign, 
with  many  others.  The  unfortunate  Lord  William 
Russell  and  his  wife  Rachel  are  here,  and  over  his 
portrait  is  the  walking-stick  which  supported  him 
to  the  scaffold,  while  hanging  on  the  wall  is  a  copy 
of  his  last  address,  printed  within  an  hour  after 
liis  execution.  Of  another  of  these  old  portraits 
Horace  Walpole  writes:  "A  pale  Roman  nose,  a 
head  of  hair  loaded  with  crowns  and  powdered  with 
diamonds,  a  vast  ruff  and  still  vaster  fardingale,  and 
a  bushel  of  pearls,  are  the  features  by  which  every- 
body knows  at  once  the  pictures  of  Queen  Elizabeth." 
There  is  a  fine  library,  and  passing  out  of  it  into  the 
flower-garden  is  seen  on  the  lawn  the  stump  of  the 
yew  tree  which  ^Ir.  Gladstone  felled  in  October, 
1878,  as  a  memorial  of  his  visit,  he  being  as  proud 
of  his  ability  as  a  forester  as  he  was  of  his  eminence 
as  a   statesman.     From  the   house   a  covered  way 


WOBURN  ABBEY.  165 

leads  to  tliG  statue-galleiy,  which  contains  an  ad- 
mirable collection,  and  the  green-house,  one  hundred 
and  fifty  feet  long,  filled  with  valuable  foreign  plants, 
the  family  being  great  horticulturists.  Busts  of  the 
great  WJiig  statesmen  are  in  the  gallery,  and  it  also 
contains  the  celebrated  Lanti  vase,  brought  from 
Rome.  The  "  Woburn  Abbey  Marbles  "  have  long 
been  a  Mecca  for  sculpture-loving  pilgrims  from 
both  sides  of  the  ocean.  There  are  extensive 
stables,  and  to  them  are  attached  a  fine  tennis- 
court  and  riding-house,  both  constantly  used  by  the 
younger  Russells.  Beyond  is  a  Chinese  dairy  kept 
for  show,  and  in  a  distant  part  of  the  grounds  a 
curious  puzzle-garden  and  rustic  grotto.  Woburn 
Park  is  one  of  the  largest  private  enclosures  in 
England,  covering  thirty-five  hundred  acres,  and 
enclosed  by  a  brick  wall  tM^elve  miles  long  and  eight 
feet  high.  It  is  undulating  in  surface,  and  contains 
several  pretty  lakes  and  a  large  herd  of  deer.  Its 
'^  Evergreen  Drive  "  is  noted,  for  in  the  spring-time 
it  attracts  visitors  from  all  quai'ters  to  see  the  mag- 
nificence of  the  rhododendrons,  which  cover  two 
hundred  acres.  The  state  entrance  to  the  park  is 
through  a  large  stone  archway  Avith  ornamental 
gates,  called  the  ''  Golden  Gates,"  on  the  road  from 
London,  and  having  two  drives  of  about  a  mile  each 
leading  up  to  the  abbey.  The  dukes  are  liberal 
patrons  of  agriculture,  and  their  annual  "  sheep- 
shearing  "  used  to  be  one  of  the  great  festivals  of 


166   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

this  part  of  England.     They  have  also  aided  in  the 

Avork  of  draining  the   Fen  country,  Avhich  extends 

into  Bedfordsliire,  and  have  thus  reclaimed  a  vast 

domain  of  the  best  farni-land,  stretching  northward 

for  fifty  miles. 

STOWE. 

We  arc  now  approaching  London,  and,  crossing 
over  the  border  into  Buckinghamshire,  come  to 
another  ducal  palace.  This  is  the  fine  estate,  near 
the  town  of  Buckingham,  of  Stowe,  also  originally 
an  abbey,  which  came  into  possession  of  the  Temple 
family  in  the  sixteenth  century,  and  in  1749  merged 
into  the  estate  of  the  Grenvilles,  the  ancestors  of 
the  last  Duke  of  Buckingham,  its  late  owner. 
Stowe  gets  its  chief  fame  from  its  pleasure-gardens, 
which  Pope  has  commemorated.  They  appear  at  a 
distance  like  a  vast  grove,  from  whose  luxuriant 
foliage  emerge  obelisks,  columns,  and  towers.  They 
are  adorned  with  arches,  pavilions,  temples,  a 
rotunda,  hermitage,  grotto,  lake,  and  bridge.  The 
temj)les  are  filled  with  statuary.  Tiie  mansion, 
which  has  been  greatly  enlarged,  has  a  frontage  of 
nine  himdred  and  sixteen  feet,  and  its  windows  look 
out  over  the  richest  possible  landscape,  profuse 
with  every  adornment.  In  the  interior  the  rooms, 
opening  one  into  another,  form  a  superb  suite. 
There  is  a  Kembrandt  Room,  hung  with  pictures 
by  that  painter,  and  many  ciu'iosities  from  Italy ; 
old  tapestry  and  draperies ;  rich  Oriental  stuffs,  the 


STOWE.  167 

spoils  of  Tippoo  Saib ;  furniture  from  the  Doge's 
Palace  in  Venice  ;  marble  pavements  from  Rome ; 
fine  paintings  and  magnificent  plate.  Formerly, 
8towe  contained  the  grandest  collection  in  England, 
and  in  this  superb  palace,  thus  gorgeously  furnished, 
Itichard  Grenville,  the  first  Duke  of  Buckingham, 
entertained  Louis  XVIII.  and  Charles  X.  of  France 
and  their  suites  during  their  residence  in  England. 
His  hospitality  was  too  much  for  him,  and,  burdened 
with  debt,  he  was  compelled  to  shut  up  Stowe  and 
go  abroad.  In  1845  his  successor  received  Queen 
Victoria  at  Stowe  at  an  enormous  cost,  and  in  1848 
there  was  a  financial  crisis  in  the  family.  The 
sumptuous  contents  of  the  palace  were  sold  to  pay 
the  debts,  and  realized  8375,000.  A  splendid 
avenue  of  elms  leads  up  from  the  town  of  Bucking- 
ham to  Stowe,  a  distance  of  two  miles.  This  mag- 
nificent home  is  now  the  seat  of  Earl  Temple.  It 
Avas  hero  that  the  Count  de  Paris  died  while  on  a 
visit  in  1894. 

Not  far  away  from  Buckingham  is  Whaddon  Hall, 
formerly  a  seat  of  the  Dukes  of  Buckingham,  but 
best  known  as  the  residence  of  Browne  Willis,  an 
eccentric  antiquary,  whose  person  and  dress  were  so 
singular  that  he  was  often  mistaken  for  a  beggar,  and 
who  is  said  "  to  have  written  the  very  worst  hand  of 
any  man  in  England."  He  \\ore  one  pair  of  boots 
for  forty  years,  having  them  patched  when  they  were 
worn  out,   and  keeping  them    till  they  had  got  all 


168    ENGLAND,   PICTUUESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

in  wrinkles,  so  tliat  he  was  known  as  "  Old  Wrinkle- 
boots."  He  was  great  for  building  cliurches  and 
quarrelling  with  the  clergy,  and  left  behind  liini 
valuable  collections  of  coins  and  manuscripts,  which 
he  bequeathed  to  Oxford  University.  Great  Hamp- 
den, the  home  of  the  patriot,  John  Hampden,  is  also 
in  Buckinghamshire.  The  original  house  remains, 
much  disfigured  by  stucco  and  wiiitewash,  and  stand- 
ing in  a  secluded  spot  in  the  Chiltern  Hills ;  it  is 
still  the  property  of  his  descendants. 

CKESLOW    HOUSE. 

The  manor  of  Creslow  in  Buckinghamshire,  owned 
by  Lord  Clifford  of  Chudleigh,  is  a  pasture-farm  of 
eight  hundred  and  fifty  acres,  and  is  said  to  raise 
some  of  the  finest  cattle  in  England ;  it  was  the 
liome  of  the  regicide  Holland.  The  mansion  is  an 
ancient  one,  spacious  and  handsome,  much  of  it, 
including  the  crypt  and  tower,  coming  down  from 
the  time  of  Edward  HI.,  with  enlargements  in  the 
fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries.  It  is  a  picturesque 
yet  venerable  building,  with  many  gables  and  curi- 
ous chimneys,  and  surmounted  by  a  square  tower  and 
loopholed  turret,  liut  its  chief  interest  attaches  to 
the  two  ancient  cellars  known  as  the  crypt  and  the 
dungeon  :  the  crypt  is  about  twelve  feet  square,  ex- 
cavated in  tljc  limestone  rock,  and  having  a  Gothic 
vaulted  ceiling,  with  a  single  small  window :  the 
dungeon  is  eighteen  feet  long,  half  as  wide,  and  six 


CRESLOW  HOUSE.  1G9 

feet  high,  without  any  Avindows,  and  with  a  roof 
formed  of  massive  stones.  This  is  the  "haunted 
chamber  of  Creslow" — haunted  by  a  lady,  Rosa- 
mond Clifford,  the  "fair  Rosamond"  of  Woodstock, 
often  heard,  but  seldom  seen,  by  those  who  stay  at 
night  in  the  room,  Avhich  she  enters  by  a  Gothic 
doorway  leading  from  the  crypt.  Few  have  ever 
ventured  to  sleep  there,  but  not  long  ago  a  guest  was 
prevailed  upon  to  do  it,  and  next  morning  at  break- 
fast he  told  his  story  :  "  Having  entered  the  room,  I 
locked  and  bolted  both  doors,  carefully  examined  the 
whole  room,  and  satisfied  myself  that  there  was  no 
living  creature  in  it  but  myself,  nor  any  entrances 
but  those  I  had  secured.  I  got  into  bed,  and,  with 
the  conviction  that  I  should  as  usual  sleep  till  six  in 
the  morning,  I  Avas  soon  lost  in  a  comfortable  slum- 
ber. Suddenly  I  was  aroused,  and  on  raising  my 
head  to  listen  I  heard  a  sound  certainly  resembling 
the  light,  soft  tread  of  a  lady's  footstep,  accompanied 
with  the  rustling  as  of  a  silk  gown.  I  sprang  out 
of  bed  and  lighted  a  candle ;  there  was  nothing  to 
be  seen  and  nothing  now  to  be  heard ;  I  carefully  ex- 
amined the  whole  room,  looked  under  the  bed,  into 
the  fireplace,  up  the  chimney,  and  at  both  the  doors, 
which  Avere  fastened  as  I  had  left  them  ;  I  looked  at 
my  Avateh,  and  it  Avas  a  few  minutes  past  tAvelve. 
As  all  Avas  noAV  perfectly  quiet,  I  extinguished  the 
candle  and  soon  fell  asleep.  I  Avas  again  aroused ; 
the  noise  Avas  now  louder  than  before ;  it  appeared 


170    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

like  the  violent  rustling  of  a  stiff  silk  dress.  I 
sprang  out  of  bed,  darted  to  the  spot  where  the  noise 
was,  and  tried  to  grasp  the  intruder  in  my  arms ;  my 
arms  met  together,  but  enclosed  nothing.  The  noise 
passed  to  another  part  of  the  room,  and  I  followed 
it,  groping  near  the  floor  to  prevent  anything  passing 
under  my  arm.  It  was  in  vain ;  I  could  feel  noth- 
ing; the  noise  had  passed  away  through  the  Gothic 
door,  and  all  was  still  as  death.  I  lighted  a  candle 
and  examined  the  Gothic  door,  but  it  was  shut  and 
fastened  just  as  I  had  left  it ;  I  again  examined  the 
whole  room,  but  could  find  nothing  to  account  for  the 
noise.  I  now  left  the  candle  burning,  though  I  never 
sleep  comfortably  with  a  light  in  my  room  ;  I  got 
into  bed,  but  felt,  it  must  be  acknowledged,  not  a 
little  perplexed  at  not  being  able  to  detect  the  cause 
of  the  noise,  nor  to  account  for  its  cessation  when 
the  candle  was  lighted.  "While  ruminating  on  these 
things  I  fell  asleep,  and  began  to  dream  about 
murders  and  secret  burials  and  all  sorts  of  horrible 
things ;  and  just  as  I  fancied  myself  knocked  down 
by  a  knight  templar,  I  awoke  and  found  the  sun 
shining  brightly." 

This  ancient  house  was  originally  the  home  of  a 
lodge  of  Knights  Templar,  and  the  dungeon,  which 
is  now  said  to  be  appropriately  decorated  with  skulls 
and  other  human  bones,  was  formerly  their  strong- 
hold. At  this  weird  mansion,  within  a  few  minutes' 
ride  of  the  metropolis,  we  will  close  our  descriptive 


CRESLOW  HOUSE.  171 

journey  through  Midland  England,  and  its  mystic 
tale  will  recall  that  passage  from  the  Book  of  Days 
which  counsels — 

"  Doubtless  there  are  no  ghosts  ; 
Yet  somehow  it  is  better  not  to  move, 
Lest  cold  hands  seize  upon  us  from  behind." 


THE   RIVER  THAMES  AND   LONDON. 


IV. 

THE  RIVER  THAMES  AND  LONDON. 

The  Thames  Head — Cotswold  Hills — Seven  Springs— Cirencester 
— Cheltenham— Sudeley  Castle — Chavenage — Shifford — Lech- 
lade — Stanton  Harcourt — Cumnor  Hall— Fair  Kosamond — 
Godstow  Nunnery — Oxford— Oxford  Colleges — Christ  Church 
— ('orpus  Christi — Merton — Oriel — All  Souls — University — 
Queen's — Magdalen — Brasenose — New  College— Radcliffe  Li- 
brary —  Bodleian  Library  —  Lincoln  —  Exeter  —  Wadham — 
Keble  —  Trinity — Balliol  —  St.  John's  —  Pembroke  —  Oxford 
Churches  —  Oxford  Castle — Carfax  Conduit  —  Banbury  — 
Broughton  Castle  —  Woodstock  —  Marlborough — Blenheim  — 
Minster  Lovel  —  Bicester — Eynsham  —  Abingdon— Eadley  — 
Bacon,  Rich,  and  Holt — Clifton  Hampden — Caversham — Read- 
ing— Maidenhead — Bisham  Abbey — Vicar  of  Bray — Eton  Col- 
lege— Windsor  Castle — Magna  Charta  Island — Cowey  Stakes — 
Ditton — Twickenham — London — Fire  Monument — St.  Paul's 
Cathedral — Westminster  Abbey — The  Tower — Lollards  and 
Lambeth  —  Bow  Church  —  St.  Bride' s  —  Wh itehall  —  Plorse 
Guards — St.  James  Palace — Buckingham  Palace— Kensington 
Palace — Houses  of  Parliament — Hyde  Park — Marble  Arch — 
Albert  Memorial — South  Kensington  Museum — Royal  Ex- 
change— Bank  of  England — Mansion  House — Inns  of  Court — 
British  Museum — Some  London  Scenes — The  Underground 
Railway — Holland  House— Greenwich— Tilbury  Fort — The 
Thames  Mouth. 

THE   THAMES   HEAD. 

The  river  Thames  is  the  largest  and  most  impor- 
tant river  in  England,  and  carries  the  greatest  com- 

175 


176    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

merce  in  the  world.  From  the  Cotswold  Hills  in 
Gloucestershire  it  flows  to  the  eastward  past  London, 
and  after  a  course  of  two  hundred  and  twenty  miles 
empties  into  the  North  Sea.  The  confluence  of 
many  small  streams  draining  the  Cotswolds  makes 
the  Thames,  but  its  traditional  source,  or  "  The 
Thames  Head,"  is  in  Trewsbury  Mead,  about  three 
miles  from  Cirencester,  and  at  an  elevation  of  three 
hundred  and  seventy-six  feet  above  the  sea-level. 
The  highest  elevation  of  the  Cotswolds,  Lockhamp- 
ton  Hill,  rises  nine  hundred  and  eighty  feet.  The 
waters  of  the  infant  stream  are  at  once  pressed  into 
service  for  pumping  into  the  higher  levels  of  a 
canal  which  pierces  the  Cotswolds  by  a  long  tunnel 
and  connects  the  Thames  Avith  the  Severn  River, 
flowing  along  their  western  base.  It  receives  many 
tiny  rivulets  that  swell  its  current,  until  at  Cricklade 
the  most  ambitious  of  these  affluents  joins  it,  and 
even  Liys  claim  to  be  the  original  stream.  This  is 
the  Churn,  rising  at  the  "  Seven  Springs,"  about 
three  miles  from  Cheltenham,  and  also  on  the  slope 
of  the  Cotswolds.  The  Churn  claims  the  honor  be- 
cause it  is  twenty  miles  long,  while  the  Thames 
down  to  Cricklade  measures  only  ten  miles.  But 
they  come  together  affectionately,  and  journey  on 
through  rich  meadows  much  like  other  streams, 
until  the  clear  waters  have  acquired  sufficient  dignity 
to  turn  a  mill. 

Cirencester  (pronounced  Cisseter),  which  thus  has 


Ubc  JSells  ot  ®iisele\?  on  tbe  Xlbames. 


THE  THAMES  HEAD.  177 

the  honor  of  being  a  near  neighbor  of  the  Thames 
Head,  is  an  ancient  town,  occupying  the  site  of  the 
Roman  city  of  Corinium,  and  is  known  as  the  '^  me- 
tropolis of  the  Cotswolds."  Here  four  great  Roman 
roads  met,  and  among  the  many  Roman  remains  it 
has  is  part  of  the  ruins  of  an  amphitheatre.  It  was 
a  famous  stronghold  before  the  Saxons  came  to  Eng- 
land, and  Polydorus  tells  how  one  Gormund,  an  Afri- 
can prince,  in  the  dim  ages  of  the  past,  besieged  it 
for  seven  long  years.  Then  he  bethought  him  that 
if  he  could  only  set  fire  to  the  thatched  roofs  of  the 
houses  he  could  in  the  commotion  that  would  follow 
force  an  entrance.  So  he  set  his  troops  at  work 
catching  sparrows,  and  when  many  were  caught 
fastened  combustibles  under  their  tails  and  let  them 
loose.  The  poor  birds  flew  straight  to  their  nests 
under  the  thatches,  set  them  in  a  blaze,  and  while 
the  people  were  busy  putting  out  the  fires  Gormund 
got  into  the  town.  In  memory  of  this  it  was  after- 
wards called  the  "  City  of  Sparrows."  The  Nor- 
mans built  a  strong  castle  here,  and  Stephen  de- 
stroyed it.  The  castle  was  rebuilt,  and  suffered  the 
usual  fiite  in  the  successive  Civil  Wars,  and  in  the 
Revolution  of  1688  the  first  bloodshed  was  at  Ciren- 
cester. It  had  a  magnificent  abbey,  built  for  the 
Black  Canons  in  the  twelfth  century,  and  ruled  by  a 
mitred  abbot  Avho  had  a  seat  in  Parliament.  A  fine 
gateway  of  this  abbey  remains,  and  also  the  beauti- 
ful church  with  its  pretty  tower.     It  is  known  now 

Vol.  I.— 12 


178    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND   DESCRIPTIVE. 

as  the  parish  churcli  of  St.  John,  and  has  been 
thorouglily  restored.  Witliin  are  the  monuments  of 
the  Bathurst  family,  whose  seat  at  Oakley  Park, 
near  the  town,  has  some  charming  scenery.  Pope's 
Seat,  a  favorite  resort  of  the  poet,  who  was  often  a 
guest  at  Oakley,  is  also  in  the  park.  Cheltenham, 
near  which  is  the  "  Seven  Springs,"  the  source  of  the 
Churn,  is  a  popular  watering-place,  with  the  P'arl  of 
Eldon's  seat  at  Stowell  Park  not  far  away.  Here  in 
1864  a  Roman  villa  was  discovered,  which  has  been 
entirely  excavated.  It  has  twenty  chambers  com- 
municating with  a  long  corridor,  and  there  arc 
several  elegant  tessellated  pavements,  Avhile  the 
walls  are  still  standing  to  a  height  of  four  feet. 
Two  temples  have  also  been  found  in  the  immediate 
neighborhood.  Substantial  buildings  have  been 
erected  to  protect  these  precious  remains  from  the 
weather. 

SUDELEY   CASTLE   AND   CHAVENAGE. 

In  the  Cotswolds  is  the  castle  of  Sudeley,  its  ruins 
being  in  rather  good  preservation.  It  was  an  exten- 
sive work,  built  in  the  reign  of  Henry  IV.,  and  was 
destroyed  in  the  Civil  Wars ;  it  was  a  famous  place 
in  the  olden  time,  and  was  regarded  as  one  of  the 
most  magnificent  castles  in  England  when  Queen 
Elizabeth  made  her  celebrated  progress  thither  in 
1592.  After  the  death  of  Henry  VIII.,  his  queen, 
Catharine  Parr,  married  Lord  Seymour  of  Sudeley, 


SUDELEY  CASTLE  AND  CIIAVENAGE.        179 

and  she  died  and  was  buried  in  tliis  castle :  it  is  re- 
lated that  her  leaden  coffin  was  exhumed  in  1782, 
two  hundred  and  eighty  years  after  her  death,  and 
the  remains  were  found  in  excellent  preservation. 
Among  the  records  of  the  castle  is  a  manuscript 
stating  that  Catharine  Parr  was  told  by  an  astrologer 
who  calculated  her  nativity  that  she  was  born  to  sit 
in  the  ''  highest  state  of  imperial  majesty,"  and  that 
she  had  all  the  eminent  stars  and  planets  in  her 
liouse  :  this  worked  such  lofty  conceit  in  the  lady 
that  "  her  mother  could  never  make  her  sew  or  do 
any  small  work,  saying  her  hands  were  ordained  to 
touch  crowns  and  sceptres,  not  needles  and  thimbles." 
Near  Tatbury,  and  also  in  the  Cotswolds,  is  the 
source  of  the  classic  river  Avon,  and  north-west  of 
the  town  is  the  fine  Elizabethan  mansion  of  Chaven- 
age,  with  its  attractive  hall  and  chapel.  The  orig- 
inal furniture,  armor,  and  weapons  are  still  pre- 
served. This  was  the  old  manor-house  of  the  family 
of  Stephens,  and  Nathaniel  represented  Gloucester- 
shire in  Parliament  at  the  time  of  the  conviction  of 
Charles  I.  :  it  is  related  that  he  was  only  persuaded 
to  agree  to  the  condemnation  by  the  impetuous  Ire- 
ton,  who  came  there  and  sat  up  all  night  in  urgent 
argument  ''  to  whet  his  almost  blunted  purpose." 
Stephens  died  in  May,  1G49,  expressing  regret  for 
having  participated  in  the  execution  of  his  sovereign. 
We  are  further  told  in  the  traditions  of  the  house 
that  when  all  the  relatives  were  assembled  for  the 


180    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

funeral,  and  the  courtyard  was  crowded  with  equi- 
pages, another  coach,  gorgeously  ornamented  and 
drawn  by  black  horses,  solemnly  approached  the 
porch :  when  it  halted,  tlic  door  opened,  and,  clad  ia 
his  shroud,  the  shade  of  Stephens  glided  into  the 
carriage ;  the  door  was  closed  by  an  unseen  hand, 
and  the  coach  moved  off,  the  driver  being  a  beheaded 
man,  arrayed  in  royal  vestments  and  wearing  the  in- 
signia of  the  Star  and  Garter.  Passing  the  gateway 
of  the  courtyard,  the  equipage  vanished  in  flames. 
Tradition  maintains  also  that  every  lord  of  Chaven- 
agc  dying  in  the  manor-house  since,  has  departed  in 
the  same  awful  manner. 

The  Thames  flows  on  after  its  junction  with  the 
Churn,  and  receives  other  pretty  streams,  all  coming 
out  of  the  (Jotswolds.  The  Coin  and  the  Lechc, 
coming  in  near  Lechladc,  swell  its  waters  sufficiently 
to  make  it  navigable  for  barges,  and  the  river  sets 
up  a  towing-path,  for  here  the  canal  from  the 
Severn  joins  it.  The  river  passes  in  solitude  out  of 
Gloucestershire,  and  then  for  miles  becomes  the 
boundary  between  Oxfordshire  on  the  north  and 
Berkshire  on  the  south.  The  canal  has  been  almost 
superseded  by  the  railway,  so  that  passing  barges 
are  rare,  but  the  towing-path  and  the  locks  remain, 
with  an  occasional  rustic  dam  thrown  across  the 
gradually  widening  river.  In  this  almost  deserted 
region  is  the  isolated  hamlet  of  Shifford,  where  King 
Alfred  held  a  parliament  a  thousand  years  ago.    Near 


STANTON  HARCOURT  AND  CUMNOR  HALL.   181 

it  is  the  New  Bridge,  a  solid  structure,  but  the  oldest 
bridge  that  crosses  the  Thames,  for  it  was  "  new  " 
more  than  six  hundred  years  ago.  The  Thames  then 
receives  the  Windrush  and  then  the  Evenlode,  and 
it  passes  over  frequent  weirs  that  have  become  minia- 
ture rapids,  yet  not  too  dangerous  for  an  expert 
oarsman  to  guide  his  boat  through  safely.  Thus  the 
famous  river  comes  to  Bablock  Hythe  Ferry,  and  at 
once  enters  an  historic  region. 

STANTON   HARCOUKT   AND    CUMXOR   HALL. 

A  short  distance  from  the  ferry  over  the  "  strip- 
ling Thames"  in  Oxfordshire  is  Stanton  Harcourt, 
with  its  three  upright  sandstones,  *'  the  Devil's 
Coits,"  supposed  to  have  been  put  there  to  commem- 
orate a  battle  between  the  Saxons  and  the  Britons 
more  than  twelve  centuries  ago.  The  village  gets 
its  name  from  the  large  and  ancient  mansion  of  the 
Harcourts,  of  which,  however,  but  little  remains. 
Pope  passed  the  greater  part  of  two  summers  in  the 
deserted  house  in  a  tower  that  bears  his  name,  and 
where  he  wrote  the  fifth  volume  of  his  translation 
of  Homer  in  the  topmost  room  :  he  recorded  the  fact 
on  a  pane  of  glass  in  the  window  in  1718,  and  this 
pane  has  been  carefully  preserved.  The  kitchen  of 
the  strange  old  house  still  remains,  and  is  a  remark- 
able one,  being  described  as  "  either  a  kitchen  within 
a  chimney  or  a  kitchen  Avithout  one."  In  the  lower 
part  of  this  kitchen  is  a  large  square  room  ;    above 


182  ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

it  is  octangular  and  ascends  like  a  tower,  the  fires 
being  njade  against  the  walls,  and  the  smoke  climb- 
ing up  them  until  it  reaches  the  conical  apex,  where 
it  goes  out  of  loopholes  on  any  side  according  to  the 
wind.  The  distance  from  the  floor  to  the  apex  is 
about  sixty  feet,  and  the  interior  is  thickly  coated 
with  soot.  The  fireplaces  arc  large  enough  to  roast 
an  ox  whole. 

Not  far  from  the  ferry,  in  Berkshire,  is  the  ancient 
manor-house  of  Cumnor  Hall,  sacred  to  the  melan- 
choly memory  of  poor  Amy  llobsart.  She  was  the 
wife  of  Dudley,  Earl  of  Leicester,  and  when  his 
ambition  led  him  to  seek  Queen  Elizabeth's  hand  it 
was  necessary  to  get  her  out  of  the  way.  So  he  sent 
Amy  to  Cunmor,  where  his  servant  Anthony  Forster 
lived.  At  first  poison  was  tried,  but  she  suspected 
it,  and  would  not  take  the  potion.  Then,  sending 
all  the  people  away.  Sir  Richard  Varney  and  Forster, 
with  another  man,  strangled  her,  and  afterwards 
threw  her  down  stairs,  breaking  her  neck.  It  was  at 
first  given  out  that  poor  Amy  had  fallen  by  accident 
and  killed  herself,  but  people  began  to  suspect  dif- 
ferently, and  the  third  party  to  the  murder,  being 
arrested  for  a  felony  and  threatening  to  tell,  was 
privately  made  away  with  in  prison  by  Leicester's 
orders.  Both  Varney  and  Forster  became  melan- 
choly before  their  deaths,  and  finally  a  kinswoman 
of  the  earl,  on  her  dying  bed,  told  the  whole  story. 
The  earl  had  Amy  buried  with  great  pomp  at  Ox- 


FAIR  ROSAMOND.  183 

ford,  but  it  is  recorded  that  the  chaplain  by  accident 
"  tripped  once  or  twice  in  his  speecli  by  recommend- 
ing to  their  memories  that  virtuous  lady  so  pitifully 
murdered,  instead  of  saying  so  pitifully  slain"  Sir 
Walter  Scott  has  Avoven  her  sad  yet  romantic  story 
into  his  tale  of  Kenilivorth ;  and  to  prove  how  am- 
bition overleaps  itself,  Ave  find  Lord  Burghley, 
among  other  reasons  which  he  urged  upon  the  queen 
why  she  should  not  marry  Leicester,  saying  that  "  he 
is  infamed  by  the  murder  of  his  Avife."  The  queen 
remained  a  A'irgin  so\'ereign,  and  Leicester's  crime 
availed  only  to  blacken  his  character.  The  church 
at  Cumnor  contains  Forster's  tomb,  Avith  a  highly 
laudatory  inscription. 

FAIR   ROSAMOND. 

The  Thames  flows  on  past  the  Avooded  glades  of 
Wytham  Abbey,  and  then  revives  the  memory  of 
Fair  Rosamond  as  it  skirts  the  scanty  ruins  of  God- 
stow  Nunnery.  This  religious  house  upon  the  river- 
bank  Avas  founded  in  the  reign  of  Henry  I.,  and  the 
ruins  are  some  remains  of  the  Avails  and  of  a  small 
chapter-house  in  Avhich  Rosamond's  corpse  Avas  de- 
posited. It  AA'as  at  Woodstock,  in  Oxfordshire,  then 
a  royal  palace,  that  in  the  twelfth  century  Henry  IL 
built  "  Fair  Rosamond's  Bower "  for  his  charmer, 
AvhoAvas  the  daughter  of  Lord  Cliflibrd.  This  boAver 
was  surrounded  by  a  labyrinth.  Queen  Eleanor, 
whom   the  king  had  married  only  from  ambitious 


181    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

motives,  was  much  older  tlian  lie,  and  lie  had  two 
sons  bj  Hosainond,  whom  he  is  said  to  have  first 
met  at  Godstow  Nunnery,  where  she  was  educated. 
The  bower  consisted  of  arched  vaults  underground. 
There  are  various  legends  of  the  discovery  of 
Rosamond  by  Eleanor,  the  most  popular  being  that 
the  queen  discovered  the  ball  of  silk  the  king  used 
to  thread  the  maze  of  the  labyrinth,  and  following 
it  found  the  door  and  entered  the  bower.  She  is 
said  to  have  ill-treated  and  even  poisoned  Rosamond, 
but  the  belief  now  is  that  Rosamond  retired  to  the 
nunnery  from  sorrow  at  the  ultimate  defection  of 
her  royal  lover,  and  did  not  die  for  several  years. 
The  story  has  been  the  favorite  theme  of  the  poets, 
and  we  arc  told  that  her  body  was  buried  in  the 
nunnery,  and  wax  lights  placed  around  the  tomb 
and  kept  continually  burning.  Subsequently,  her 
remains  were  reinterred  in  the  chapter-house,  with 
a  Latin  inscription,  which  is  thus  translated : 

"This  tomb  doth  here  enclose  tlie  worlds  most  beauteous  rose — 
Koee  passing  sweet  erewliile,  now  nauglit  but  odor  vile." 

OXFORD. 

As  wc  float  along  the  quiet  Thames  the  stately 
towers  and  domes  of  the  university  city  of  Oxford 
come  in  sight,  and  appear  suddenly  to  rise  from 
behind  a  green  railway  embankment.  Here  the 
C'herwell  flows  along  the  Christ  Church  meadows 
to  join  the  great  river,  and  we  pause  at  the  ancient 


OXFORD.  185 

Ousenford — or  the  ford  over  the  Ouse  or  Water — a 
name  which  time  has  changed  to  Oxford.  The 
origin  of  the  famous  university  is  involved  in  ob- 
scurity. The  city  is  mentioned  as  the  scene  of 
important  political  and  military  events  from  the  time 
of  King  Alfred,  but  the  first  undisputed  evidence 
that  it  Avas  a  seat  of  learning  dates  from  the  twelfth 
century.  Religious  houses  existed  thei'e  in  earlier 
years,  and  to  these  schools  were  attached  for  the 
education  of  the  clergy.  The  original  nucleus  of 
the  town  seems  to  have  been  the  nunnery  of  St. 
Frideswide,  established  probably  as  early  as  the 
eighth  century  on  ground  now  the  site  of  the  Oxford 
Cathedral.  The  earliest  use  of  the  name  of  Oxford 
is  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  Chronicle  in  the  year  912, 
and  it  was  a  place  of  military  importance  and  of 
meetings  of  the  Saxon  Witenagemet  in  the  eleventh 
century.  The  first  gathering  of  masters  and  scholars 
not  attached  to  monastic  establishments  was  in  the 
succeeding  century,  and  it  was  not  until  then  that 
colleges — endowed  and  incorporated  bodies  of  masters 
and  students  within  the  university — came  into  exist- 
ence. It  was  natural  that  from  the  religious  schools 
should  develop  the  secular  institutions  that  finally 
became  colleges,  and  common  interest  led  them  to 
associate  as  a  university.  There  were  theological 
lectures  about  the  year  1130  and  legal  studies  after- 
ward, and  in  the  beginning  of  the  thirteenth  century 
Oxford  ranked  with  the  most  important  universities 


18G    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

of  Europe.  The  first  known  application  of  the 
word  to  this  association  occurs  in  a  statute  of  King 
John.  In  the  thirteenth  century  there  were  tliree 
thousand  students  at  Oxford,  and  Ilenry  III.  granted 
t})e  university  its  first  charter.  In  those  early  times 
the  university  grew  in  wealth  and  numbers,  and 
intense  hostility  was  developed  between  the  students 
and  townspeople,  leading  to  the  quarrels  between 
"  Town  and  Gown  "  that  existed  for  centuries,  and 
caused  frequent  riots  and  bloodshed.  A  penance  for 
one  of  these  disturbances,  which  occurred  in  135-1:  and 
sacrificed  fifty  lives,  continued  to  be  kept  until  1825. 
The  religious  troubles  in  Henry  VIII. 's  time  reduced 
the  students  to  barely  one  thousand,  but  a  small  part 
of  whom  attended  the  colleges,  so  that  in  1540  only 
thirteen  degrees  were  conferred.  In  1603  the  uni- 
versity was  given  representation  in  Parliament ;  it 
Avas  loyal  to  Charles  I.,  and  melted  its  plate  to  assist 
}jim,  so  that  after  his  downfall  it  was  plundered,  and 
almost  ceased  to  have  an  existence  as  an  institution 
of  learning ;  it  has  since  had  a  quiet  and  gener- 
ally prosperous  history.  The  university  comprises 
twenty-one  colleges  and  two  halls,  the  oldest  being 
University  College,  founded  in  1249,  and  the  young- 
est the  Keble  IMemorial  College,  founded  in  1870. 
University  College,  according  to  tradition,  represents 
a  school  founded  by  King  Alfred  in  872,  and  it 
celebrated  its  millenial  anniversary  in  1872.  Balliol 
College,  founded  between  1263  and  1282,  admits  no 


OXFORD.  187 

one  who  claims  any  privilege  on  account  of  rank 
or  Avealth,  and  is  regarded  as  having  perhaps  the 
highest  standard  of  scholarship  at  Oxford.  Christ 
Church  College  is  the  most  extensive  in  buildings, 
numbers,  and  endowments,  and  is  a  cathedral  estab- 
lishment as  well  as  college.  There  are  now  about 
eighty-five  hundred  members  of  the  university  and 
three  thousand  students,  the  university  having  about 
fifty  professors,  thirty  readers  or  lecturers,  and  three 
hundred  fellows,  besides  numerous  tutors.  The 
fellowships  generally  range  from  $1000  to  $1500 
a  year,  and  most  of  them  w^ere  formerly  granted  for 
life,  provided  the  holder  remained  unmarried  and 
took  holy  orders.  They  are  now  of  two  kinds,  some 
being  prize  fellowships  and  held  for  six  or  seven 
years  without  restriction  as  to  residence,  marriage, 
or  profession,  while  the  tenure  of  others  is  con- 
ditioned on  the  performance  of  work  in  the  univer- 
sity. There  are  numerous  scholarships  for  under- 
graduates, valued  at  $150  to  $600,  with  free  rooms. 
The  wealth  of  some  of  the  colleges  is  enormous, 
and  they  are  said  to  own  altogether  nearly  two 
hundred  thousand  acres  of  land  in  different  parts  of 
the  kingdom,  and  to  have  about  $2,100,000  annual 
revenues,  of  which  they  expend  not  over  $1,500,000, 
the  remainder  accumulating.  They  also  have  in 
their  gift  four  hundred  and  fifty  benefices,  with  an 
annual  income  of  $950,000.  It  costs  a  student 
about   $750  to    $1000   a  year   to   live   at  Oxford, 


188   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

(altliough  some  wlio  are  very  economical  manage  to 
get  through  for  S500),  and  about  S325  in  university 
and  college  fees  from  matriculation  to  graduation, 
when  he  gets  his  degree  of  B.  A.,  or,  if  inattentive, 
fails  to  pass  the  examination,  and,  in  Oxford  par- 
lance, is  said  to  be  "  plucked."  Nathaniel  Haw- 
thorne, when  at  the  university,  wrote  of  this 
wonderful  caravansary  of  learning :  "  The  Avorld 
surely  has  not  another  place  like  Oxford ;  it  is  a 
desj)air  to  see  such  a  place  and  ever  to  leave  it,  for 
it  would  take  a  lifetime,  and  more  than  one,  to  com- 
prehend and  enjoy  it  satisfactorily." 

TIIK    OXFORD    COLLEGES. 

The  enumeration  of  the  colleges  which  make  up 
the  university  will  naturally  begin  with  the  greatest, 
Christ  Churcl),  founded  by  Cardinal  Wolsey,  in 
1524,  of  whidi  the  principal  fayade  extends  four 
hiuidred  feet  along  St.  Aldate's  Street,  and  has  a 
noble  gateway  in  the  centre  surmounted  by  a  six- 
sided  tower  witli  a  dome-like  roof.  Here  hangs  the 
great  bell  of  Oxford,  "  Old  Tom,"  weighing  seven- 
teen thousand  pounds,  which  every  night,  just  after 
nine  o'clock,  strikes  one  hundred  and  one  strokes,  said 
to  be  in  remembrance  of  the  number  of  members  the 
college  had  at  its  foundation.  Wolsey's  statue  stands 
in  the  gateway  which  leads  into  the  great  quad- 
rangle, called  by  the  students,  for  short,  "  Tom 
Quad."     Here   are    the    lodgings   of  the    dean  and 


jfront  Qlu^^l•anolc,  ©riel  Colleoe,  ©itor&. 


THE  OXFORD  COLLEGES.  189 

canons,  and  also  the  Great  Hall,  the  finest  in  Oxford, 
and  the  room  where  the  sovereign  is  received  when- 
ever visiting  the  city.  The  ancient  kitchen,  the 
oldest  portion  of  Cardinal  Wolscy's  building,  adjoins 
the  hall,  and  near  by  is  the  entrance  to  the  Oxford 
Cathedral,  which  has  been  restored,  and  the  ancient 
cloisters.  Here  are  the  tombs  of  Bishop  Berkeley, 
who  died  in  1753,  and  Dr.  Pusey,  dying  in  1882, 
and  a  tablet  in  memorj^  of  Robert  Burton,  author  of 
the  Anatomy  of  Melanchohjj  who  died  in  1639. 
From  the  buildings  a  meadow  extends  down  to  the 
rivers,  the  Cherwell  on  the  left  and  the  Thames 
(here  called  the  Isis)  on  the  right,  which  join  at  the 
lower  part  of  the  meadow.  Beautiful  walks  are  laid 
out  upon  it,  including  the  famous  Oxford  promenade, 
the  Broad  Walk,  a  stately  avenue  of  elms  bordering 
one  side  of  the  meadow.  Here,  on  the  afternoon  of 
Show  Sunday,  which  comes  immediately  before 
Commemoration  Day,  nearly  all  the  members  of  the 
university  and  the  students,  in  academic  costume, 
make  a  promenade,  presenting  an  animated  scene. 
Among  the  distinguished  students  of  Christ  Church 
have  been  the  Prince  of  Wales,  Gladstone,  Peel, 
Wellington,  the  Wesleys,  Ruskin,  Liddon,  and  in 
earlier  times  Sir  Philip  Sidney,  Locke,  Camden,  and 
])en  Jonson.  Pusey  was  also  a  member  of  Christ 
Church. 

Corpus    Christi    College   was   founded  by  Bishop 
Fox  of  Winchester  in   1516,  and  his  crozier  is  pre- 


190  ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

served  here,  and  its  quadrangle,  wliich  remains  much 
as  at  the  foundation,  contains  the  founder's  statue, 
and  also  a  remarkable  dial,  in  the  centre  of  which  is 
a  j)erpetual  calendar.  This  college  is  not  very 
marked  in  architecture  and  stands  at  the  back  of 
Christ  Church.  Among  the  members  of  Corpus 
were  Richard  Hooker,  Cardinal  Pole,  Bishop  Keble, 
Thomas  Arnold,  General  Oglethorpe,  the  founder  of 
Georgia,  Chief  Justice  Coleridge,  and  Thomas  Day, 
who  wrote  Sandford  and  Mcrton.  Adjoining  Corpus 
is  ^lerton  College,  founded  in  12G4  by  Walter  de 
Morton.  His  idea  was  to  forbid  the  students  follow- 
ing in  after-life  any  other  pursuit  than  that  of  j)arish 
priest.  The  chapel  of  Mcrton  is  one  of  the  finest  in 
Oxford,  and  its  massive  tower  is  a  city  landmark. 
The  entrance-gateway,  surmounted  by  a  sculptured 
representation  of  8t.  John  the  Baptist,  is  attractive, 
and  the  two  college  quadrangles  arc  picturesque,  the 
''Mob  Quad,"  or  library  quadrangle,  being  five 
hundred  years  old,  with  the  Treasury  and  its  high- 
pitched  ashlar  roof  and  dormer  windows  above  one 
of  the  entrance-passages.  Merton  has  contributed 
[;ix  archbishops  to  the  see  of  Canterbury,  and 
Harvey,  who  discovered  the  circulation  of  the  blood, 
was  its  master.  Among  the  distinguished  graduates 
have  been  kSteele,  Bodley,  the  founder  of  the  Bod- 
leian Library,  and  John  Duns  Scotus.  8t.  Alban 
Hall,  built  about  1230,  adjoins  Merton,  and  is  in- 
corporated with  it,  a  Gothic  structure  with  a  curious 


THE  OXFORD  COIXEGES.  191 

old  bell-tower.  Oriel  College  stands  opposite  Cor- 
pus Christi,  but  the  ancient  buildings  of  the  founda- 
tion in  1324—26  have  all  been  superseded  by  com- 
paratively modern  structures  of  the  seventeenth 
century:  though  without  any  striking  architectural 
merits,  the  hall  and  chapel  of  this  college  are  ex- 
tremely picturesque.  Its  fame  is  not  so  much  from 
its  buildings  as  from  some  of  its  students,  Sir  Walter 
Raleigh,  Bishop  Butler,  Whately,  Keble,  Wilber- 
force,  Newman,  Pusey,  and  Thomas  Hughes  having 
been  among  them.  St.  Mary's  Hall,  an  offshoot 
founded  in  the  fourteenth  century,  stands  near  this 
college,  and  is  significantly  called  the  "  Skimmery  " 
by  the  students. 

All  Souls  College  is  on  the  High  Street,  and  was 
founded  in  1437,  its  buildings  being,  however, 
modern,  excepting  one  quadrangle.  In  the  chapel 
is  a  magnificent  reredos,  presented  by  Lord  Bathurst, 
who  was  a  fellow  of  All  Souls,  and  containing 
figures  representing  most  of  the  felloM's  of  his  time ; 
in  the  library  are  Wren's  original  designs  for  build- 
ing St.  Paul's.  There  are  about  fifty  fellowships  in 
All  Souls,  mostly  held  by  lawyers,  and  among  its 
members  have  been  Jeremy  Taylor,  Blackstone, 
Bishop  Heber,  and  Lord  Salisbury.  This  college 
was  founded  by  Archbishop  Chichele  for  "  the  hele 
of  his  soul "  and  of  the  souls  of  all  those  who 
perished  in  the  French  wars  of  King  Henry  V. ; 
hence  its  name.     We  arc  told  that  the  good  arch- 


192  ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

bishop  was  much  troubled  where  to  locate  his  col- 
lege, and  there  appeared  to  him  in  a  dream  a  "  right 
godly  personage,"  avIio  advised  him  to  build  it  on  the 
High  Street,  and  at  a  certain  spot  where  he  would  be 
sure  in  digging  to  find  a  ''  mallard,  imprisoned  but 
well  fattened,  in  the  sewer."  He  hesitated,  but  all 
whom  he  consulted  advised  him  to  make  the  trial, 
and  accordingly,  on  a  fixed  day  after  mass,  Avith  due 
solemnity  the  digging  began.  They  had  not  dug 
long,  the  story  relates,  before  they  heard  "  amid  the 
earth  horrid  strugglings  and  flutterings  and  violent 
quackings  of  the  distressed  mallard."  When  he  was 
brought  out  he  was  as  big  as  an  ostrich,  and  "  much 
wonder  was  thereat,  for  the  lycke  had  not  been  seen 
iu  this  londc  nor  in  onie  odir."  The  Festival  of  the 
^lallard  was  long  held  in  commemoration  of  this 
event,  at  which  was  sung  the  "Merry  Song  of  the 
All  Souls  Mallard,"  beginning — 

"Griffin,  bustard,  turkey,  capon, 
Let  other  liunj^rv  mortals  gape  on. 
And  on  the  hnnea  their  stomach  fill  hard  ; 
But  let  All  Souls  men  have  their  mallard. 
Oh,  by  the  blood  of  King  Edward, 
It  was  a  wopping,  wopping  mallard  I " 

While  the  festival  has  passed  away,  the  song  is  still 
sung  at  Oxford,  and  the  tale  has  given  rise  to  much 
literature,  there  having  been  vigorous  contests  waged 
over  the  authenticity  of  tlie  mallard. 

University  College,  also  on  the  High  Street,  though 


MAGDALEN  AND  BRASENOSE.  193 

tlie  earliest  founded,  now  has  no  building  older  than 
the  seventeenth  century.  It  has  an  imposing  Gothic 
front  with  two  tower-gateways,  while  the  recently 
constructed  Xew  Building  is  an  elegant  structure 
erected  in  1850,  The  poet  Shelley  and  Lord  Chan- 
celler  Eldon  were  students  here.  Queen's  College, 
founded  in  13-10  by  Robert  de  Eglesfield,  Queen 
Philippa's  confessor,  and  hence  its  name,  is  a  modern 
building  by  Wren  and  his  pupils.  Addison,  Jeremy 
Bentham,  and  Francis  Jeffrey  were  undergraduates, 
and  in  the  early  days  the  Black  Prince  and  Edward 
V.  St.  Edmund  Hail,  opposite  Queen's  College,  is  a 
plain  building,  but  with  magnificent  ivy  on  its  walls, 
built  in  1559,  the  college  having  been  founded  in 
1226. 

MAGDALEN   AND   BRASENOSE. 

Bishop  Patten  of  Winchester,  who  was  surnamed 
Waynflete,  founded  St.  Mary  Magdalen  (pronounced 
IMaudlin)  College  in  1458.  It  stands  by  the  side 
of  the  Cherwell,  and  its  graceful  tower,  nearly 
four  hundred  years  old,  rises  one  hundred  and  forty- 
five  feet — one  of  the  most  beautiful  constructions  in 
Oxford.  Its  quadrangles  are  fine,  especially  the  one 
known  as  the  Cloisters,  which  remains  much  as  it 
was  in  the  time  of  the  founder,  and  is  ornamented 
with  rude  sandstone  statues  erected  in  honor  of  a 
visit  from  King  James  I.  In  accordance  with  an- 
cient custom,  on  the  morning  of  the  first  of  May, 

Vol.  L— 13 


194    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

just  as  five  o'clock  strikes,  a  solemn  Te  Deum  is 
sung  on  the  top  of  Magdalen  Tower,  where  the 
choristers  assemble  in  surplices  and  with  uncovered 
heads.  When  it  closes  the  crowd  on  the  ground 
below  give  out  discordant  blasts  from  myriads  of  tin 
horns,  but  the  Magdalen  chime  of  bells,  said  to  be 
"  the  most  tunable  and  melodious  ring  of  bells  in  all 
these  parts  and  beyond,"  soon  drowns  the  discord, 
and  gives  a  glad  welcome  to  the  opening  of  spring. 
This  custom  survives  from  the  time  of  Henry  VIL, 
and  the  produce  of  two  acres  of  land  given  to  the 
college  by  that  king  is  used  to  pay  for  a  feast  for  the 
choristers,  spread  later  in  the  day  in  the  college  hall. 
The  college  has  a  meadow  and  small  deer-park  at- 
tached, known  as  the  jNIagdalen  Walks,  and  encir- 
cled by  the  arms  of  the  Cherwell,  while  avenues  of 
trees  along  raised  dykes  intersect  it.  The  avenue 
on  the  north  side  of  this  meadow  is  known  as  "  Ad- 
dison's A\'alk,"  and  was  much  frequented  by  him 
when  at  Oxford.  The  little  deer-park,  a  secluded 
spot,  abounds  with  magnificent  elms.  It  was  at 
Magdalen  tiiat  Wolsey  was  educated,  being  known 
as  the  "  Boy  Bachelor,"  as  he  got  his  B.  A.  degree 
at  the  early  age  of  fifteen.  Wolsey  was  also  the 
bursar  of  the  college.  The  Botanic  Garden  is  op- 
posite lyiagdalon  College,  having  a  fine  gateway  with 
statues  of  Charles  I.  and  II.  Magdalen  College 
School,  a  modern  building,  but  an  organization 
coeval  with  the  college,  is  a  short  distance  to  the 


filaoOaleu  Cloister  auD  Uov^er,  ©iforO. 


MAGDALEN  AND  BRASENOSE.  195 

westward.  Among  the  distinguished  names  con- 
nected with  ^Magdalen  College  are  Wolsey,  Hamp- 
den, Addison,  Lord  Selborne,  Charles  Reade, 
Goldwin  Smith,  and  Gibbon. 

The  King's  Hall,  commonly  known  as  Brasenose 
College,  and  over  the  entrance  of  which  is  a  prom- 
inent brazen  nose,  still  retains  its  chief  buildings  as 
originally  founded  by  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln  and  Sir 
Richard  Sutton  in  1509.  The  entrance-tower  has 
been  restored,  and  the  rooms  occupied  by  Bishop 
Heber,  who  was  a  member  of  this  college,  are  still 
pointed  out,  Mith  their  windows  looking  upon  a 
large  horse-chestnut  tree  in  the  adjoining  Exeter 
Gardens.  This  famous  college  is  said  to  occupy  the 
spot  where  King  Alfred's  palace  stood,  and  hence  its 
name  of  the  King's  Hall,  which  the  king  in  his  laws 
styled  his  palace.  The  part  of  the  palace  which 
was  used  for  the  brew-house,  or  the  hrasinium, 
afterwards  became  the  college,  and  as  early  as  Ed- 
ward L  this  found  ocular  demonstration  by  the  fixing 
of  a  bi'azen  nose  upon  the  gate.  It  seems  that  the 
original  knocker  or  door-handle,  iri  the  form  of  a  nose 
of  brass,  which  gave  the  name  to  Brasenose,  was 
taken  to  Stamford  by  a  migrating  party  of  Oxford 
students  in  1334,  but  it  was  brought  back  in  1890, 
after  the  addition  of  the  fine  new  quadrangle  and 
principal's  house,  completed  a  year  or  two  earlier. 
This  precious  relic  is  now  kept  in  the  Hall,  and  is 
said   in  the  legends   to   have    been   part    of    Friar 


196   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Bacon's  brazon  head.  We  are  told  that  this  famous 
friar,  who  lived  at  Oxford  in  tlie  thirteenth  century, 
became  convinced,  "  after  great  study,"  that  if  he 
should  succeed  in  making  a  head  of  brass  which 
could  sj)eak,  "  he  might  be  able  to  surround  all  Eng- 
land with  a  wall  of  brass."  So,  with  the  assistance 
of  another  friar  and  the  devil,  he  went  to  work  and 
accomplished  it,  but  with  the  drawback  that  the 
brazen  head  when  finished  was  "  warranted  to  speak 
in  the  course  of  one  month,"  but  it  was  uncertain 
just  when  it  would  speak,  and  "if  they  heard  it  not 
before  it  had  done  speaking,  all  their  labor  would  be 
lost."  They  watched  it  three  weeks,  but  fatigue 
overmastered  them,  and  Bacon  set  his  servant  on 
watch,  with  orders  to  awaken  them  if  the  head  should 
speak.  At  the  end  of  one  half  hour  the  servant 
heard  the  head  say,  "  Time  is  ;"  at  the  end  of  another, 
"Time  was;"  and  at  the  end  of  a  third  half  hour, 
"  Time's  past,"  when  down  fell  the  head  with  a  tre- 
mendous crash.  The  blockhead  thought  his  master 
would  be  angry  if  disturbed  by  such  trifles,  and  this 
ended  the  experiment  with  the  brazen  head.  Yet 
Friar  Bacon  was  a  much  wiser  man  than  would  be 
supposed  by  those  who  only  know  him  from  this  tale. 
He  was  esteemed  the  most  learned  man  ever  at  the 
great  university,  and  it  is  considered  doubtful  if  any 
there  in  later  years  surpassed  him.  Foxe  of  the 
Book  of  Martyrs,  Klias  Ashmole,  Kiehard  Harris 
Barham,  author  of  the  Ingoldshy  Legends,  and  Dean 


NEW  COLLEGE  AND  RADCLIFFE  LIBRARY.    197 

Milman  belonged  to  Brasenose.     It  is  at  present  a 
famous  boating  and  athletic  college. 

NEW   COLLEGE   AND   RADCLIFFE    LIBRARY. 

William  of  Wykeham  founded  the  Ncav  College, 
or  the  College  of  St.  Mary  Winton,  in  1380.  It  has 
a  noble  entrance,  and  in  a  niche  above  the  gateway 
is  the  Virgin,  to  whom  an  angel  and  the  founder  are 
addressing  themselves  in  prayer.  The  chapel  has  a 
massive  detached  bell-tower,  and  in  its  windows  are 
some  line  stained  glass,  while  the  silver  staff  of 
William  of  Wykeham  is  still  preserved  there.  The 
cloisters  are  extensive  and  picturesque,  the  ribbed 
roof  resembling  the  bottom  of  a  boat,  while  the 
restored  hall  has  a  line  oaken  roof.  The  New  Col- 
lege gardens  are  enclosed  on  three  sides  by  the 
ancient  walls  of  the  city,  which  are  well  preserved, 
and  the  enclosure  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  in 
Oxford.  Through  a  door  in  a  corner  of  the  gardens 
there  is  a  passage-way  opening  out  of  one  of  the  bas- 
tions of  the  old  walls  into  a  strip  of  ground  called 
the  *'  Slype,"  where  a  fine  view  is  had  of  the  bastions, 
with  the  college  bell-tower  and  chapel  behind  them. 
In  making  an  addition  to  the  buildings  of  this  col- 
lege on  the  edge  of  the  ''  Slype,"  the  workmen  in 
dioririn":  for  the  foundations  discovered  the  remains 
of  a  mammoth.  Sidney  Smith  was  a  student  at  New 
College. 

New  College  Lane  leads  to  Radcliffc  Square,  in 


198    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVP:. 

the  centre  of  -which  is  located  the  liandsome  Rad- 
cliffc  Library,  -with  colleges,  churches,  and  schools 
all  around  the  square.  Dr.  Radcliffe,  who  -was  the 
court-physician  of  King  William  III.  and  Queen 
Anne,  founded  this  library,  which  is  in  a  handsome 
rotunda  surmounted  by  a  dome  on  an  octagonal  base. 
The  structure,  which  is  one  hundred  feet  in  diameter, 
rises  to  a  height  of  one  hundred  and  forty  feet,  and 
from  the  top  there  is  a  tine  vicAV  of  the  city.  To 
the  northward,  at  a  short  distance,  are  the  Schools, 
a  quadrangular  building  now  chiefly  occupied  by  the 
famous  Bodleian  Library.  From  Radcliffe  Square 
the  entrance  is  through  a  vaulted  passage,  the  central 
gate-tower  being  a  remarkable  example  of  the  com- 
bination of  the  five  orders  of  architecture  piled  one 
above  the  other.  In  this  building,  on  the  lower  floor, 
the  public  examinations  of  the  candidates  for  degrees 
are  held,  while  above  is  the  library  which  Sir  Thomas 
Bodley  founded  in  the  sixteenth  century,  and  which 
contains  530,000  vohimes,  including  many  ancient 
and  highly-prized  works  in  print  and  manuscript  and 
about  50,000  coins. 

Lincoln  College  was  founded  by  Richard  Flemyng, 
Bishop  of  Lincoln,  in  1429.  Here  John  Wesley 
was  a  member,  and  the  pulpit  from  which  he 
■  preached  is  still  kept  as  a  precious  relic.  Opposite 
to  Lincoln  is  Jesus  College,  founded  by  Queen 
Elizabeth  in  1571,  though  others  assisted;  it  was 
intended  to  be  exclusively  for  Welshmen,  but  this 


NEW  COLLEGE  AND  EADCLIFFE  LIBRARY.    199 

lias  since  been  changed,  though  it  has  raised  a  large 
progeny  of  Welsh  bishops,  and  divine  service  is  still 
regularly  held  in  the  chapel  in  the  Welsh  language. 
This  chapel  is  unique  in  having  a  double  chancel. 
Alongside  of  Lincoln  is  Exeter  College,  founded  by 
Walter  Stapleton,  Bishop  of  Exeter,  in  1314 ;  this  is 
one  of  the  largest  colleges,  the  greater  part  of  the 
buildings  being  modern  ;  they  are  among  the  finest 
in  Oxford.  The  hall,  restored  in  the  present  cen- 
tury, has  a  high-pitched  timber  I'oof,  while  the 
chapel,  which  is  one  of  the  most  remarkable  edifices 
in  Oxford,  has  a  thin,  small  spire  that  is  conspicuous 
from  a  great  distance.  Lyell,  Froude,  and  the  first 
Earl  of  Shaftesbury  were  alumni  of  Exeter.  The 
Ashmolean  Museum  adjoins  this  college,  and  was 
founded  by  Elias  Ashmole  in  1682,  containing  his 
collection  of  antiquities,  some  of  the  Arundel 
Marbles,  which  are  ancient  sculptural  fragments  and 
inscriptions,  and  various  other  curiosities  and  his- 
torical relics.  Among  the  most  noted  are  King 
Alfred's  Jewel,  and  watches  which  belonged  to 
Queen  Elizabeth  and  Oliver  Cromwell.  Kext  to 
the  museum  is  the  Sheldonian  Theatre,  built  in 
1669  by  Archbishop  Sheldon  of  Canterbury,  where 
the  annual  commemoration  is  held  and  the  honoraiy 
degrees  are  conferred.  This  is  a  handsome  hall 
accommodating  over  3000  persons.  The  annual 
commemoration  or  commencement  day  is  known 
as  "  the  Encainia  or  annual  commemoration  of  the 


200    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCKIPTIVE. 

foiiiulers,"  the  prize  essays  and  poems  being  de- 
livered and  degrees  conferred.  The  undergraduates 
at  this  important  ceremonial  occupy  the  upper 
gallery,  and  they  freely  express  their  opinions  as  to 
the  merits  and  appearance  of  the  recipients  of  the 
degrees,  as  the  latter  appear.  Kot  far  away  is 
Wadham  College,  founded  in  1613  by  Nicholas 
Wadham  and  Dorothy  his  wife.  It  has  excellent 
buildings  and  a  most  beautiful  garden.  Among  its 
students  were  Sir  Christopher  Wren,  Lord  Chancellor 
Woetbury,  Admiral  Blake,  Congreve,  and  Frederick 
Harrison.  The  British  Royal  Society  grew  out  of 
meetings  for  scientific  discussion  held  in  Wadham 
in  1G48.  There  is  a  modern  ^luseum  of  Natural 
History  in  the  park  near  by,  and  also  Keble  College, 
founded  in  1868  as  a  memorial  of  Bishop  John 
Keble,  the  author  of  the  Christian  Year.  Its  build- 
ings are  of  variegated  brick,  the  chapel  being  the 
loftiest,  most  costly,  and  finest  of  its  style  in  Oxford. 
One  of  the  objects  in  founding  this  college  was  to 
give  the  opportunity  of  a  university  career  to 
students  Avhose  limited  means  do  not  permit  them 
to  study  at  the  older  and  more  expensive  establish- 
ments. There  are  no  fellows  in  Keble,  and  the 
endowment  provides  much  of  the  expenses  of  the 
undergraduates.  Not  far  away  there  stood  in  the 
olden  time  Hartford  or  Hertford  Hall,  dating  from 
1282.  In  its  place  was  established  Hertford  College 
in  1740,  which  fell  into  disuse  in  the  early  part  of 


NEW  COLLEGE  AND  RADCLIFFE  LIBRARY.    201 

tliG  present  century,  but  was  resuscitated  by  Mr. 
Thomas  Baring  in  1874.  Among  the  members  of 
this  college  were  Lord  Chancellor  Clarendon,  Lord 
Seldon,  Thomas  Hobbes,  Sir  Matthew  Hale,  Dean 
Swift,  and  Charles  James  Fox. 

Trinity  College  was  founded  in  1554  by  Sir  Thomas 
Pope.  Its  tower  and  chapel  are  Grecian,  and  the 
chapel  has  a  most  beautiful  carved  screen  and  altar- 
piece.  The  library  contains  a  chalice  that  once  be- 
longed to  St.  Alban's  Abbey.  The  elder  Pitt,  Lord 
Selborne,  James  Bryce,  and  Sir  Ilichard  Burton  were 
members  of  Trinity.  Kettel  Hall,  now  a  private 
dwelling,  is  a  picturesque  building  in  front  of  Trinity. 
On  Broad  Street,  where  Trinity  stands,  is  also 
Balliol  College,  founded  in  the  thirteenth  century  by 
John  Balliol.  None  of  the  existing  buildings  are 
earlier  than  the  fifteenth  century,  Avhile  the  south 
front,  with  its  massive  tower,  has  been  rebuilt.  It 
was  here  that  the  martyrs  Cranmer,  Latimer,  and 
Ridley  were  burned  in  1555-56.  This  is  one  of  the 
largest  Oxford  colleges  and  maintains  a  high  stand- 
ard of  scholarship.  It  is  the  chief  Scottish  college, 
and  its  rolls  contain  the  names  of  Adam  Smith, 
Sir  William  Hamilton  the  metaphysician,  Robert 
Southey,  John  Lockhart,  Cardinal  IManning,  Dean 
Stanley,  and  Algernon  Swinburne.  A  little  farther 
along  the  same  street  is  St.  John's  College,  which 
Sir  Thomas  White  founded  in  1555.  It  is  fronted 
by  a  terrace  planted  with  fine  elms.     Its  quadrangles 


202    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

and  cloisters  arc  much  admired,  especially  the 
venerable  oriel  windows,  and  quaint  stone  gables  of 
the  library,  which  contains  relics  of  Archbishop 
Laud,  including  the  skull-cap  he  wore  when 
executed.  8t.  John's  gardens  are  regarded  as 
among  the  most  attractive  in  Oxford.  Opposite 
St.  John's  are  the  university  galleries,  with  their 
display  of  the  Ponifret  ]\Iarbles  and  Raphael  and 
iMichel  Angelo's  paintings  and  drawings,  and  behind 
this  building  is  AVorccster  College,  founded  in  1714 
by  Sir  Thomas  Cookcs.  Its  gardens  contain  a  lake. 
Thomas  De  Quincey  and  Bonamy  Price  studied  at 
AVorccster.  Pembroke  College  is  opposite  Christ 
Church,  and  was  founded  in  1024  in  honor  of  the 
Earl  of  Pembroke,  then  the  chancellor  of  the  uni- 
versity. AA'hile  its  entrance-gateway  and  hall,  of 
modern  build,  are  fine,  the  other  buildings  are  not 
attractive.  The  chief  remembrance  of  Pembroke 
is  of  Dr.  Samuel  Johnson,  who  occupied  apartments 
over  the  original  gateway,  but  was  compelled  by 
j)overty  to  leave  the  college  before  taking  his 
degree.  The  college  possesses  Johnson's  china  tea- 
j)ot  and  the  desk  on  which  he  wrote  his  Dktionnrrj, 
and  among  its  adornments  is  a  fine  portrait  of  him 
by  Reynolds.  Shenstone,  AA'^hitfield,  and  Pym  were 
students  at  Pembroke.  Tljere  arc  also  at  Oxford 
]\Iansfield  College,  finished  in  1889,  a  Congrega- 
tionali.st  theological  college,  and  the  handsome  ]Man- 
chester  College,  opened  in  1893  by  the  Unitarians, 


OXFORD  CHURCHES  AND  CASTLE.  203 

who  transferred  the  establishment  from  London. 
There  are  three  halls  for  ladies,  where  the  discipline 
and  studies  are  assimilated  as  closely  as  possible  to 
those  of  the  colleges.  These  are  Lady  ^Fargaret  Hall, 
founded  in  1879,  St.  Hugh's  Hall,  1886,  and  Somer- 
ville  College,  opened  in  1879  and  named  in  honor  of 
Mrs.  Somerville,  the  mathematician.  The  scholar- 
ship of  the  female  students  is  tested  by  the  uni- 
versity examination-papers,  but  they  have  separate 
class-lists  and  do  not  take  degrees.  A  large  number 
of  the  university  and  college  lectures  are  open  to 
women.  This  completes  the  description  of  the 
colleges,  halls,  and  schools  of  the  great  university, 
which  presents  an  array  of  institutions  of  learning 
unrivalled  in  any  part  of  the  world,  and  of  which 
Englishmen  are  justly  proud. 

OXFORD    CHURCHES   AND    CASTLE. 

The  chief  street  of  Oxford  is  the  High  Street, 
familiarly  called  "  The  High,"  flanked  on  both  sides 
by  a  splendid  series  of  picturesque  and  famous 
buildings.  Sir  Walter  Scott  regarded  this  street  as 
rivalling  the  noted  High  Street  of  Edinburgh,  Haw- 
thorne calls  it  ''  the  noblest  old  street  in  England," 
and  Wordsworth  indited  a  sonnet  to  the  "stream- 
like windings  of  that  glorious  street."  There  are 
some  fine  churches  in  Oxford,  notably  the  university 
church  of  St.  Mary  the  Virgin,  conspicuous  from  its 
Decorated  spire  rising  one  hundred  and  eighty-eight 


204    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

feet,  which  is  a  memorial  of  Queen  Eleanor  of 
Castile.  A  short  distance  to  the  westward  is  All 
Saints  Church.  Fronting  Christ  Church  is  St. 
Aldate's  Church,  also  with  a  lofty  spire  and  Deco- 
rated tower.  Like  most  English  towns,  Oxford 
had  a  castle,  but  its  remains  are  now  reduced  to 
a  solitary  tower,  a  few  fragments  of  wall,  and  a 
high  mound.  This  castle  has  long  been  the  property 
of  Christ  Church,  and  was  used  for  a  prison,  whence 
Cranraer  and  his  fellow-martyrs  went  to  the  stake. 
The  old  tower  was  built  in  the  days  of  William 
Rufus.  Beneath  the  ruins  is  a  crypt  known  as 
Maud's  Chapel.  In  the  centre  of  the  mound  is  an 
octagonal  vaulted  chamber,  approached  by  a  long 
flight  of  steps,  and  containing  a  well.  It  was  in 
this  castle  that  the  empress  ]Maud  was  besieged  by 
King  Stephen  in  1141,  but  escaped  in  the  night, 
the  castle  surrendering  next  morning.  The  ground 
was  covered  with  snow  at  the  time,  and  the  empress, 
with  three  attendants,  clad  in  white,  passed  unnoticed 
through  the  lines  of  the  besiegers  and  crossed  the 
Thames  on  the  ice.  Just  before  this  Maud  escaped 
from  the  castle  of  Devizes  as  a  dead  body  drawn  on 
a  hearse.  The  castle  of  Oxford  has  been  in  a 
dilapidated  condition  since  Edward  III.'s  time.  As 
an  evidence  of  the  change  of  opinion,  the  ]\rartyrs' 
]\Iemorial,  a  rich  Gothic  monument  erected  in  1841 
and  adorned  with  their  statues,  stands  on  St.  Giles 
Street  in  honor  of  the  martyrs  Cranmer,  Latimer, 


OXFORD  CHURCHES  AND  CASTLE.  205 

and  Ridley,  -vvlio  found  the  old  tower  of  the  castle 
tJieir  prison-house  until  the  Ligots  of  that  day  were 
ready  to  burn  them  at  the  stake  in  front  of  Balliol 
College. 

The  intersection  of  the  four  principal  streets  of 
old  Oxford  makes  Avhat  is  called  the  Carfax  (a  word 
derived  from  quatre  voies),  and  here  in  the  olden 
time  stood  a  picturesque  conduit.  Conduits  in 
former  years  were  ornaments  in  many  English 
towns,  and  some  of  them  still  remain  in  their  orig- 
inal locations.  This  conduit,  which  stood  in  the  Avay 
of  traffic,  was  presented  as  a  nuisance  as  long  ago 
as  the  time  of  Laud,  and  Lord  Harcourt  in  1787 
removed  it  to  his  park  at  Nuneham.  One  of  the 
curious  changes  that  have  come  over  some  Oxford 
landmarks  is  related  of  a  group  of  statues  in  the 
entrance  to  the  Schools,  where  the  Bodleian  Library 
is  located.  This  group  represents  Mater  Academia 
giving  a  book  to  King  James  I.,  sitting  in  his  chair 
of  state,  while  winged  Fame  trumpets  the  gift 
throughout  the  M'orld.  When  the  king  saw  this, 
embellished  with  appropriate  mottoes,  all  of  which 
Avere  gloriously  gilt,  the  ancient  historian  says  he 
exclaimed,  "  By  my  soul !  this  is  too  glorious  for 
Jeamy,"  and  caused  the  gilded  mottoes  to  be 
"  whited  out."  Originally,  the  statue  of  the  king 
held  a  sceptre  in  his  right  hand,  and  a  book,  com- 
monly taken  for  the  Bible,  in  his  left.  Both  have 
disappeared.     The   sceptre    is   said    to    have    fallen 


206   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

upon  the  passing  of  tlie  Reform  Bill,  and  the  book 
came  down  about  the  time  of  the  .abolition  of  the 
University  Tests.  The  eastern  part  of  Oxford  is 
meadow-  and  garden-land,  extending  down  to  the 
two  famous  rivers  which  unite  just  below  the  town, 
and  along  whose  shores  the  racing-boats  in  which 
the  students  take  so  much  interest  are  moored. 
Pretty  bridges  span  both  streams,  and  we  follow 
down  the  Thames  again,  skirting  along  its  pictu- 
resque shores  past  Iffley,  with  its  romantic  old  mill 
and  the  ancient  church  with  its  square  tower  rising 
behind,  well-known  landmarks  that  are  so  familiar 
to  boating-men,  till  we  come  to  Nuneham  Park,  with 
the  old  Carfax  Conduit  set  on  an  eminence,  and 
Blenheim  Woods  looming  up  in  the  background,  as 
we  look  towards  Oxford. 

The  church  of  Itlloy  is  beautifully  situated  on  the 
Thames,  but  little  is  known  of  Us  origin  or  history. 
It  was  in  existence  in  1180,  Avhen  King  Henry  11. 
died,  and  its  architecture  indicates  that  it  could 
scarcely  have  been  built  much  before  that  time. 
It  is  an  unusually  good  specimen  of  the  Norman 
style,  and  is  in  wonderful  preservation,  considering 
its  age.  This  church  is  peculiarly  rich  in  its  door- 
ways, having  three  of  great  value,  and  each  differ- 
ing from  the  other.  The  southern  doorway  is  en- 
riched with  sculptured  flowers,  a  style  that  is  al- 
most unique  in  Norman  architecture  ;  it  also  contains 
rudely  carved  imitations  of   Roman  centaurs.      On 


BANBURY  AND  BROUGHTON.       207 

the  south  side  of  the  church  are  an  ancient  cross  and 
one  of  the  most  venerable  yew  trees  in  the  kingdom, 
in  the  trunk  of  which  time  has  made  a  hollow  where 
a  man  could  easily  conceal  himself.  There  is  not  on 
all  the  Thames  a  scene  more  loved  by  artists  than 
that  at  Iffley,  Avith  its  old  mill  and  church  embosomed 
in  foliage,  and  having  an  occasional  fisherman  lazily 
angling  in  the  smooth  waters  before  them,  while  the 
Oxford  oarsmen,  some  in  fancy  costumes,  paddle  by. 
From  the  Cherwell,  the  straight  reach  of  the  Thames 
for  two  miles  down  to  Iffley  is  the  usual  course  of  the 
various  Oxford  University  boat  races. 

BANBURY   AND   BROUGHTON. 

If  we  go  up  the  Cherwell  towards  the  northern 
part  of  Oxfordshire,  a  brief  visit  can  be  paid  to  the 
famous  town  of  Banbury,  noted  for  its  "  castle,  cross, 
and  cakes."  This  was  an  ancient  Koman  station, 
and  the  amphitheatre  still  exists  just  out  of  town. 
The  castle  was  built  in  the  twelfth  century,  and 
many  conflicts  raged  around  it.  Queen  Elizabeth 
granted  the  castle  to  Lord  Saye  and  Sele,  and  one 
of  his  successors  first  organized  the  revolt  against 
Charles  I.  at  his  neighboring  mansion  of  Broughton. 
Banbury  was  a  great  Puritan  stronghold,  and  it  is 
related  that  when  a  book  descriptive  of  Banbury 
was  being  printed  in  those  days,  it  contained  a 
sentence  describing  Banbury  as  remarkable  for 
its  cheese,  cakes,  and  ale.     One  Camden,  looking  at 


208   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

the  press  while  the  sheet  Avas  being  printed,  thought 
this  too  light  an  expression,  and  changed  the  word 
ah  into  ^c«Z,  so  that  the  town  became  noted  for  Ban- 
bury zeal  as  well  as  cheese  and  cakes.  The  old 
castle  after  standing  several  desperate  sieges,  was 
demolished  by  the  Puritans,  and  nothing  now  remains 
excepting  the  moat  and  a  small  remnant  of  wall  on 
which  a  cottage  has  been  built.  The  Banbury  cakes 
are  mentioned  as  early  as  1G86,  and  they  are  still  in 
high  repute,  being  sent  to  all  parts  of  the  world. 
The  Banbury  cheese  of  which  Shakespeare  wrote  is 
no  longer  made.  The  Banbury  cross  has  been  im- 
mortalized in  nursery-rhymes;  it  was  taken  down 
by  the  Puritans  and  was  only  recently  restored.  The 
rhyme  tolls  the  little  folk, 

"  Ride  a  cock-horse  to  Banbiiry  Cross, 
To  see  a  fine  lady  ride  on  a  wliite  horse: 
With  rings  on  her  fingers  and  bells  on  her  toes. 
She  shall  have  music  wherever  she  goes." 

Diligent  research  has  developed  some  important  in- 
formation about  this  fine  lady.  It  appears  that  in 
"  the  Second  Edward's  reign  a  knight  of  much  re- 
nown, yclept  Lord  Herbert,  chanced  to  live  near 
famous  Banbury  town."  Now,  this  knight  had  one 
son  left,  and  "  fearless  and  brave  was  he ;  and  it 
raised  the  pride  in  the  father's  heart  his  gallant  son 
to  see."  The  poetic  tale  goes  on  to  relate  "  that 
near  Lord  Herbert's  ancient  hall  proud  Banbury 
Castle  stood,  within  the  noble  walls  of  which  dwelt 


BANBURY  AND  BROUGHTON.       209 

a  maiden  young  and  good ;"  with  much  more  to  the 
same  effect.  There  is  the  usual  result :  the  knight 
loves  the  lady,  has  a  mortal  combat  with  the  rival, 
and  nearly  loses  his  life.  The  fair  lady  nurses  him 
with  care,  but  as  he  gradually  sinks  she  loses  hope 
and  pines  away.  A  holy  monk  lived  in  the  castle, 
and,  noticing  her  despondency,  offers  to  effect  a  cure. 
He  prescribes  :  "  To-morrow,  at  the  midnight  hour, 
go  to  the  cross  alone :  for  Edward's  rash  and  hasty 
deed  perhaps  thou  mayst  atone."  She  goes  there, 
walks  around  the  cross,  and  Edward  is  cured.  Then 
all  rejoice,  and  a  festival  is  ordered,  whereat, 

"  Upon  a  milk-white  steed,  a  lady  doth  appear: 
By  all  she's  welcomed  lustily  in  one  tremendous  cheer ; 
With  rings  of  brilliant  lustre  her  fingers  are  bedecked, 
And  bells  upon  her  palfrey  hung  to  give  the  whole  effect." 

A  noble  cavalier  rode  beside  her,  and  the  result  has 
been 

"  That  even  in  the  present  time  the  custom's  not  forgot; 
But  few  there  are  who  know  the  tale  connected  with  the  spot, 
Though  to  each  baby  in  the  land  the  nursery-rhymes  are  told 
About  the  lady  robed  in  white  and  Banbury  Cross  of  old." 

Broughton  Castle  is  a  fine  castellated  mansion  a 
short  distance  south-west  of  Banbury.  It  dates  from 
the  Elizabethan  era,  and  its  owner.  Viscount  Saye 
and  Sele,  in  Charles  I.'s  reign,  thinking  that  his 
services  were  not  sufficiently  rewarded,  took  the  side 
of  Parliament,  in  which  his  son  represented  Banbury. 
Vol.  I.— U 


210  ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

AVlion  the  king  dissolved  Parliament,  it  assembled 
clandestinely  in  Brougliton  Castle.  Here  the  Parlia- 
mentary leaders  met  in  a  room  with  thick  walls,  so 
that  no  sounds  could  escape.  Here  also  were  raised 
the  earliest  troops  for  the  Parliament,  and  the  "  Blucv 
coats"  of  the  Sayes  were  conspicuous  at  the  battle 
of  Edgehill,  which  was  fought  only  a  few  miles  away. 
Immediately  afterwards  King  Charles  besieged 
Brougliton  Castle,  captured  and  plundered  it.  This 
famous  old  building  witnessed  in  this  way  the  earli- 
est steps  that  led  to  the  English  Revolution,  and  it 
is  kept  in  quite  good  preservation.  Subsequently, 
when  Oliver  Cromwell  became  the  leader  of  the 
Parliamentary  party,  he  held  his  Parliament  in  Ban- 
bury at  the  Roebuck  Inn,  afme  piece  of  architecture, 
with  a  great  window  that  lights  up  one  of  the  best 
rooms  in  England  of  the  earlier  days  of  the  Eliza- 
bethan era.  A  low  door  leads  from  the  courtyard 
to  this  noted  council-chamber  Avhere  Cromwell  held 
his  Parliament,  and  it  remains  in  much  the  same 
condition  as  then. 

WOODSTOCK  Axn  bi>exiip:i.m. 

Not  far  away  from  Oxford  is  the  manor  of  Wood- 
stock, where  "  Fair  Rosamond's  Bower"  was  built 
by  King  Henry  11.  Tiiis  manor  was  an  early  resi- 
dence of  the  kings  of  England,  and  Henry  I.  built  a 
palaeo  there,  adding  to  it  a  vast  park.  Of  this 
palace  not  a  sign  is  now  to  be  seen,  but  two  syca- 


WOODSTOCK  AND  BLENHEIM.  211 

mores  have  been  planted  to  mark  the  spot.  The 
poet  Chaucer  lived  at  Woodstock,  and  is  supposed 
to  have  taken  much  of  the  descriptive  scenery  of 
his  Dream  from  the  park.  Edward  the  Black 
Prince,  son  of  Edward  III.,  -was  born  at  Woodstock. 
Henry  Vll.  enlarged  the  palace,  and  put  his  name 
upon  the  principal  gate  ;  and  this  gate-house  was 
one  of  the  prisons  of  the  princess  Elizabeth,  where 
she  was  detained  by  her  sister,  Queen  Mary.  Eliza- 
beth is  said  to  have  written  Avith  charcoal  on  a 
■window-shutter  of  her  apartment,  in  1555,  a  brief 
poem  lamenting  her  imprisonment.  Her  room  had 
an  arched  roof  formed  of  carved  Irish  oak  and 
colored  with  blue  and  gold,  and  it  M-as  preserved 
until  taken  down  by  Sarah,  Duchess  of  Marlborough. 
In  the  Civil  War  the  palace  was  besieged,  and  after 
surrender,  unlike  most  similar  structures,  escaped 
demolition.  Cromwell  allotted  it  to  three  persons, 
two  of  whom  pulled  down  their  portions  for  the  sake 
of  the  stone.  Charles  II.  appointed  the  Earl  of 
Rochester  gentleman  of  the  bedchamber  and  comp- 
troller of  Woodstock  Park,  and  it  is  said  that  he 
here  scribbled  upon  the  door  of  the  bedchamber  of 
the  king  the  -well-known  mock  epitaph : 

"  Here  lies  our  sovereign  lord,  tlie  king, 
Wliose  word  no  man  relies  on  ; 
He  never  says  a  foolish  thing. 
Nor  ever  does  a  wise  one.' ' 

In  Queen  Anne's  reign  Woodstock  was  granted  to 


212   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRirXIVP:. 

John  Churchill,  Duke  of  IM.irlborough,  for  his 
euiincnt  military  services.  The  condition  of  the 
grant,  which  is  scrupulously  performed,  was  that  on 
August  2d  in  every  year  ho  and  his  heirs  should 
present  to  the  reigning  monarch  at  AVindsor  Castle 
one  stand  of  colors,  with  three  fleurs-de-lis  painted 
thereon.  The  estate  was  named  Blenheim,  after  the 
little  village  on  the  Danube  which  was  the  scene  of 
his  greatest  victory  on  August  2,  1704.  Ten  years 
later,  the  duchess  Sarah  took  down  the  remains  of 
the  old  palace  of  Woodstock,  and  Scott  has  woven 
its  history  into  one  of  his  later  novels.  Hardly  any 
trace  remains  of  old  Woodstock,  and  the  only  ruin  of 
interest  is  a  curious  chimney-shaft  of  the  fourteenth 
century,  which  a  probably  inaccurate  tradition  says 
was  part  of  the  residence  of  the  Black  Prince. 

Woodstock  Park  covers  twenty-seven  hundred 
acres,  and  is  nearly  twelve  miles  in  circuit,  abound- 
ing with  fine  trees  and  having  an  undulating  surface, 
over  which  roam  a  large  herd  of  deer  and  a  number 
of  kangaroos.  When  the  manor  was  granted  to  the 
Duke  of  Marlborough,  Parliament  voted  a  sum  of 
money  to  build  him  a  palace  *' as  a  monument  of  his 
glorious  actions."  The  park  is  entered  through  a 
fine  Corinthian  gatew.iy,  built  by  the  duchess  Sarah 
in  memory  of  her  husband  the  year  after  his  death. 
A  pretty  stream  of  water,  the  river  Glyme,  with  a 
lake,  win«ls  through  a  valley  in  front  of  the  palace, 
and    is    crossed   by  a   stately  stone    bridge  with    a 


WOODSTOCK  AND  BLENHEIM.  213 

centre  arch  of  one  hundred  feet  span.  Not  far  from 
this  bridge  was  Fair  Rosamond's  Bower,  now 
marked  by  a  wall ;  beyond  the  bridge,  standing  on 
the  lawn,  is  the  Marlborough  Column,  a  fluted  Co- 
rinthian pillar  one  hundred  and  thirty-four  feet  high, 
surmounted  by  the  hero  in  Roman  dress  and  tri- 
umphal attitude.  This  monument  to  the  great  duke 
has  an  account  of  his  victories  inscribed  on  one  face 
of  the  pedestal,  while  on  the  others  are  the  acts  of 
Parliament  passed  in  his  behalf,  and  an  abstract  of 
the  entail  of  his  estates  and  honors  upon  the  de- 
scendants of  his  daughters.  Parliament  voted 
S2,500,000  to  build  Blenheim  Palace,  to  which  the 
duke  added  $300,000  from  his  own  resources.  The 
duke  died  seventeen  years  after  the  palace  was 
begun,  leaving  it  unfinished.  We  are  told  that  the 
trees  in  the  park  were  planted  according  to  the 
position  of  the  troops  at  Blenheim.  The  architect 
of  the  palace  was  John  Vanbrugh,  of  whom  the 
satirical  epitaph  was  written  : 

"  Lie  heavy  on  him,  Earth,  for  he 
Laid  many  a  heavy  load  on  thee." 

The  palace  is  a  massive  structure,  a  good  example 
of  his  heavy,  though  imposing,  style,  with  spacious 
portals  and  lofty  towers,  and  its  principal  front, 
which  faces  the  north,  extends  three  hundred  and 
forty-eight  feet  from  wing  to  wing,  with  a  portico 
and  flight  of  steps  in  the   centre.     The  interior  is 


214   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

very  fino,  uith  maj^nificently-painted  ceilings,  tapes- 
trios,  statuary,  and  a  rare  collection  of  })icturcs. 
The  tapestries  represent  Blenheim  and  other  battles, 
and  there  are  one  hundred  and  twenty  copies  of 
famous  masters,  made  by  Teniers.  A  stately  statue 
of  Queen  Anne  stands  in  the  library.  There  are 
costly  collections  of  enamels,  })laques,  and  minia- 
tures ;  on  the  walls  huge  paintings  by  Sir  James 
Thornhill,  one  representing  the  great  duke,  in  a  blue 
cuirass,  kneeling  before  Britannia,  clad  in  Avhite  and 
holding  a  lance  and  wreath ;  Hercules  and  Mars 
stand  by,  and  emblem-bearing  females  and  the 
usual  paraphernalia.  We  are  told  that  Thorn- 
hill  was  paid  for  these  at  the  rate  of  about  six 
dolhirs  per  square  yard.  The  duchess  Sarah  also 
poses  in  the  collection  as  Minerva,  wearing  a  yellow 
classic  breastplate.  Many  of  the  most  valuable 
paintings  from  the  Blenheim  collection  have,  how- 
ever, been  sold.  Among  other  relics  kept  in  the 
palace  are  Oliver  Cromwell's  teapot,  and  another 
teapot  presented  by  the  Due  de  Kichelieu  to  Louis 
XIV.,  two  bottles  that  belonged  to  Queen  Anne,  and 
some  Roman  and  Grecian  pottery.  The  great  hall, 
wliich  has  the  battle  of  Bh'nheim  depicted  on  its 
ceiling,  rises  to  the  entire  heigiit  of  the  building; 
the  library  is  one  hundred  and  eighty-three  feet 
long ;  and  in  the  chapel,  beneath  a  pompous  marble 
monument,  rest  the  great  duke  and  his  proud 
duchess  Sarah,  and  their  two  sons,  who  died  in  eaily 


WOODSTOCK  AND  BLENHEIM.  215 

years.  The  pleasure-gardens  extend  over  tliree 
hundred  acres  along  the  borders  of  the  lake  and 
river,  and  are  very  attractive.  They  contain  the 
Temple  of  Health  erected  on  the  recovery  of  George 
III.  from  his  illness,  an  aviary,  a  cascade  elabo- 
rately constructed  of  large  masses  of  rock,  a  fountain 
copied  after  one  in  Koine,  and  a  temple  of  Diana. 
This  great  estate  was  the  reward  of  the  soldier 
Avhose  glories  were  sung  by  Addison  in  his  poem  on 
the  ('ampai'jn.  Addison  then  lived  in  a  garret  up 
three  pair  of  stairs  over  a  small  shop  in  the  Hay- 
market,  London,  whither  Avent  the  Chancellor  of  the 
Exchequer  to  get  him  to  write  the  poem,  and  after- 
wards gave  him  a  place  Avorth  SIOOO  a  year  as  a 
reward.  The  Marlboroughs  since  have  been  almost 
too  poor  to  keep  up  this  magnificent  estate  in  its 
proper  style,  for  the  family  of  kSpencer-Churchill, 
holding  the  title,  unlike  most  of  the  other  great 
English  houses,  has  not  been  blessed  with  a  princely 
entailed  private  fortune.  The  last  Duke,  however, 
recouped  himself  by  marryjng  a  wealthy  New  York 
widow,  and  the  Duchess  of  ]\larlboroiigh  of  to-day 
is  a  Vanderbilt.  Not  far  from  Woodstock  is  ]\Iinster 
Lovel,  near  the  village  of  AVhitney.  .Some  frag- 
ments of  the  house  remain,  and  it  has  its  tale  of 
interest,  like  all  these  old  houses.  Lord  Lovel  was 
one  of  the  supporters  of  the  impostor  Simnel  against 
Henry  VIL,  and  his  rebellion  being  defeated  in  the 
decisive    battle  at  Stoke  in   Nottinghamshire,   Lord 


216    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Lovcl  escaped  by  unfrequented  roads  and  arrived 
liome  at  night.  He  was  so  disguised  that  he  was 
only  known  by  a  single  servant,  on  whose  fidelity  ho 
could  rely.  Before  daybreak  he  retired  to  a  subter- 
ranean recess,  of  which  this  servant  retained  the 
key,  and  here  he  remained  several  months  in  safe 
concealment.  The  king  confiscated  the  estate,  how- 
ever, and  dispersed  the  household,  so  that  the  volun- 
tary prisoner  perished  from  hunger.  During  the 
last  century,  when  this  stately  house  was  pulled 
down,  the  vault  was  discovered,  with  Lord  Level 
seated  in  a  cliair  as  he  had  died.  So  completely 
had  rubbish  excluded  the  air  that  his  dress,  which 
was  described  as  superb,  and  a  prayer-book  lying 
before  him  on  a  table,  were  entire,  but  soon  after 
the  admission  of  fresh  air  the  body  is  said  to  have 
fallen  into  dust. 

BICESTER   AND   EYNSHAM. 

A  pleasant  and  old-fashioned  town,  not  far  away 
from  r)xf()rd,  is  IJicestery  whereof  one  part  is  known 
as  the  King's  End  and  the  other  as  the  Market  End. 
Here  is  the  famous  Bicester  Priory,  founded  in  the 
twelfth  century  through  the  influence  of  Thomas  a 
])eckct.  It  was  intended  for  a  prior  and  eleven 
canons,  in  imitation  of  Christ  and  his  eleven  discij)les. 
The  priory  buildings  remained  for  some  time  after 
the  dissolution  of  the  religious  hotises,  but  they 
gradually  disappeared,  and  all   that  now  exists  is  a 


BICESTER  AND  EYNSHAM.  217 

small  farm-house  about  forty  feet  long,  which  formed 
part  of  tlie  boundary-wall  of  the  priory,  and  is  sup- 
posed to  have  been  a  lodge  for  the  accommodation 
of  travellers.  In  the  garden  was  a  well  of  never- 
failing  water  held  in  high  repute  by  pilgrims,  and 
which  now  supplies  a  fish-pond.  The  priory  and  its 
estates  have  passed  in  regular  succession  through 
females  from  its  founder,  Gilbert  Basset,  to  the 
Stanleys,  and  is  thus  one  of  the  possessions  of  the 
Earl  of  Derby.  Bicester  is  an  excellent  specimen 
of  an  ancient  English  market-town,  and  its  curious 
block  of  market-buildings,  occupied  by  at  least 
twenty -five  tenements,  stands  alone  and  clear  in  the 
market-place.  There  are  antique  gables,  one  of  the 
most  youthful  of  which  bears  the  date  of  1098.  On 
the  top  is  a  promenade  used  by  the  occupants  in 
sunmier  weather.  In  the  neighboring  village  of 
Eynsham  is  said  to  be  the  stone  coffin  that  once 
held  Eair  Rosamond's  remains,  but  it  has  another 
occupant,  one  Alderman  Eletcher  having  also  been 
buried  in  it  in  182G.  Eynsham  once  had  an  abbey, 
of  which  still  survives  the  shaft  of  a  stone  cross 
quaintly  carved  with  tlie  figures  of  saints.  It  is 
a  relic  probably  of  the  thirteenth  century,  but 
nothing  remains  of  the  abbey  beyond  a  few  stones 
that  may  have  belonged  to  it.  It  was  near  Eynsham, 
not  very  long  ago,  that  a  strange  dark-green  water- 
plant  first  made  its  appearance  in  the  Thames,  and 
spread    so    rapidly   that    it    soon    quite    choked    the 


218    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

navigation  of  the  river,  and  from  tliere  soon  ex- 
tended almost  all  over  tlic  kingdom.  Tlie  meadows 
and  the  rivers  became  practically  all  alike,  a  green 
expanse,  in  which  from  an  eminence  it  was  difficult 
to  tell  where  the  water-courses  lay.  This  plant  was 
called  the  "  American  weed,"  the  allegation  being 
that  it  came  over  in  a  cargo  of  timber  from  the  St. 
Lawrence.  It  caused  great  consternation,  but  just 
■when  matters  looked  almost  hopeless  it  gradually 
withered  and  died,  bringing  the  navigation  welcome 

relief. 

ABINGDON   AND    RADLEY. 

Crossing  over  into  Berkshire,  we  find,  a  short  dis- 
tance south  of  Oxford,  on  the  bank  of  the  Thames,  the 
ruins  of  the  once  extensive  and  magnificent  Abing- 
don Abbey,  founded  in  the  seventh  century.  It  was 
here  tliat  Henry,  the  son  of  William  the  Conqueror, 
■was  educated  and  gained  his  appellation  of  Beau- 
clere.  The  gatehouse  still  remains  and  is  at  present 
devoted  to  the  use  of  fire-engines,  but  there  is  not 
much  else  remaining  of  the  abbey  save  a  remark- 
able chimney  and  fireplace  and  some  fragments  of 
■walls.  A\  e  are  told  that  the  Saxons  founded  this 
abbey,  and  that  the  Danes  destroyed  it,  while  King 
Alfred  deprived  the  monks  of  their  possessions,  but 
his  grandson  ^Edred  restored  them.  The  abbey  was 
then  built,  and  became  afterwards  richly  endowed. 
For  six  centuries  it  was  one  of  the  great  religious 
liouses    of    this   part   of    England  ;    and    the   Bene- 


ABINGDON  AND  RADLEY.  219 

dictincs,  true  to  their  creed,  toiled  every  day  in  the 
fields  as  well  as  prayed  in  the  church.  They  began 
the  day  with  religious  services  ;  then  assembled  in  the 
chapter-house,  where  each  Avas  allotted  his  task  and 
tools,  and  after  a  brief  prayer  they  silently  marched 
out  in  double  file  to  the  fields.  From  Easter  until 
October  they  Avere  thus  occupied  from  six  in  the 
morning  until  ten  o'clock,  and  sometimes  until  noon. 
Thus  they  promoted  thrift,  and  as  their  settlement 
extended  it  became  the  centre  of  a  rich  agricultural 
colony,  for  they  often,  as  their  lands  expanded,  let 
them  out  to  farmers.  A  short  distance  from  Abing- 
don is  Kadley,  which  was  formerly  the  manor  of  the 
abbey,  and  contains  a  beautiful  little  church,  w-ealthy 
in  its  stores  of  rich  woodwork  and  stained  glass ;  it 
stands  in  the  middle  of  the  woods  in  a  charming 
situation,  with  picturesque  elm  trees  overhanging 
the  old  Tudor  building.  Kadley  House  is  now  a 
training-school  for  Oxford,  and  it  has  a  swiunning- 
scliool  attached,  in  Avhich  have  been  prepared  several 
of  the  most  famous  Oxford  oarsmen,  swinnning 
being  here  regarded  as  a  necessary  preliminary  to 
boating.  Near  by  is  Bagloy  Wood,  the  delicious 
resort  of  the  Oxonians  Avliich  Dr.  Arnold  loved  so 
well.  The  village  of  Sunningwell,  not  far  from 
Iladley,  also  has  a  church,  and  before  its  altar  is  the 
grave  of  Dean  Fell,  once  its  rector,  who  died  of 
grief  on  hearing  of  the  execution  of  Cluirles  I. 
From   the   tower   of  this   church   Friar   Bacon,   the 


220    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

liero  of  the  story  of  the  brazen  head,  is  said  to  have 
made  astronomical  observations :  this  renowned 
friar,  lioger  Bacon,  has  come  down  to  us  as  the 
most  learned  man  that  Oxford  ever  produced, 
liacon's  Study  was  near  the  Folly  Bridge,  across 
the  Tiiames  on  the  road  to  Oxford,  and  it  survived 
until  1779,  when  it  Avas  taken  down.  Among  the 
many  legends  told  of  Bacon  is  one  that  he  used  such 
skill  and  magic  in  building  the  tower  containing  this 
study  that  it  would  have  fallen  on  the  head  of  any  one 
more  learned  than  himself  who  might  pass  under  it. 
Hence,  freshmen  on  their  arrival  at  Oxford  are  care- 
fully warned  not  to  Avalk  too  near  the  Friar's  Tower. 
Bacon  overcame  the  greatest  obstacles  in  the  pursuit 
of  knowledge ;  he  spent  all  his  own  money  and  all 
that  he  could  borrow  in  getting  books  and  instru- 
ments, and  then,  renouncing  the  world,  he  became  a 
mendicant  monk  of  the  order  of  St.  Francis.  His 
Opus  MaJHS — to  publish  which  he  and  his  friends 
pawned  their  goods — was  an  epitome  of  all  the 
knowledge  of  his  time. 

Other  famous  men  came  also  from  Abingdon. 
Edmund  Rich,  who  did  so  much  to  raise  the  charac- 
ter of  Oxford  in  its  earlier  days,  was  born  there 
about  the  year  1200 ;  his  parents  were  very  poor, 
and  his  father  sought  refuge  in  Eynsham  Abbey. 
We  are  told  that  his  mother  was  too  poor  to 
funiish  young  Rich  '^  with  any  other  outfit  than  his 
horsehair  shirt,  which  she  made  him  promise  to  wear 


ABINGDON  AND  EADLEY.  221 

every  Wednesday,  and  -svluch  probably  had  been 
the  cause  of  his  father's  retirement  from  their 
humble  abode."  Rich  went  from  Eynsham  to  Ox- 
ford, and  soon  became  its  most  conspicuous  scholar ; 
then  he  steadily  advanced  until  he  died  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury.  Chief-Justice  Holt,  who  re- 
formed the  legal  procedure  of  England,  was  also  a 
native  of  Abingdon  ;  he  admitted  prisoners  to  some 
rights,  protected  defendants  in  suits,  and  had  the 
irons  stricken  off  the  accused  when  brought  into 
court,  for  in  those  days  of  the  cruel  rule  of  Judge 
Jeffreys  the  defendant  was  always  considered  guilty 
until  adjudged  iimocent.  Holt  originated  the  apho- 
rism that  "  slaves  cannot  breathe  in  England :"  this 
was  in  the  famous  Somerset  case,  where  a  slave  was 
sold  and  the  vendor  sued  for  his  money,  laying  the 
issues  at  Mary-le-Bow  in  London,  and  describing  the 
negro  as  "  there  sold  and  delivered."  The  chief- 
justice  said  that  the  action  was  not  maintainable,  as 
the  status  of  slavery  did  not  exist  in  England.  If, 
however,  the  claim  had  been  laid  in  Virginia,  he  said 
he  would  have  been  obliged  to  allow  it ;  so  that  the 
decision  was  practically  on  technical  grounds.  Lord 
Campbell  sums  up  Holt's  merits  as  a  judge  by  say- 
ing that  he  was  not  a  statesman  like  Clarendon,  nor  a 
philosopher  like  Bacon,  nor  an  orator  like  Mansfield, 
yet  his  name  is  held  in  equal  veneration  with  theirs, 
and  that  some  think  him  the  most  venerated  judge  that 
ever  was  chief-justice.     There  is  a  really  good  story 


222   ENGLAND,   riCTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

told  of  him  by  Lord  Campbell.  In  his  younger 
days  Holt  was  travelling  in  Oxfordshire,  and 
stopped  at  an  inn  where  the  landlady's  daughter 
had  an  illness  inducing  fits.  She  .appealed  to  him, 
and  he  promised  to  work  a  cure ;  which  he  did  by 
writing  some  Greek  words  on  a  piece  of  parchment 
and  telling  her  to  let  her  daughter  wear  the  charm 
around  her  neck.  Partly  from  the  fact  that  the 
malady  had  spent  itself,  and  possibly  also  from  the 
effect  of  her  imagination,  the  girl  entirely  recovered. 
Years  rolled  on  and  he  became  the  lord  chief-justice, 
when  one  a  day  a  withered  old  woman  was  brought 
before  the  assizes  for  being  a  witch,  and  it  was 
])roven  that  she  pretended  to  cure  all  manner  of 
cattle  diseases,  and  with  a  charm  that  she  kept  care- 
fidly  wrapped  in  a  bundle  of  rags.  The  woman  told 
how  the  charm  many  years  before  had  cured  her 
daughter,  and  when  it  was  unfolded  and  handed  to 
the  judge  he  remembered  the  circumstance,  recog- 
nized his  talisman,  and  ordered  her  release. 

CAVERSHAM  AND  READING  ABBEY. 

As  we  continue  the  journey  down  the  Thames  the 
shores  on  either  hand  seem  cultivated  like  gardens, 
with  trim  hedgerows  dividing  them,  pretty  villages, 
cottages  gay  with  flowers  and  evergreens,  spires 
rising  among  the  trees ;  and  the  bewitching  scene 
reminds  us  of  Ralph  Waldo  Emerson's  tribute  to  the 
English  landscape,  that  "  it  seems  to  be  finished  with 


CAVERSHAM  AND  READING  ABBEY.    223 

the  pencil  instead  of  the  plough."  The  surface  of 
the  river  is  broken  by  numerous  little  "  aits "  or 
islands.  We  pass  the  little  old  house  and  the  vener- 
able church  embosomed  in  the  rural  beauties  of 
Clifton-Hampden.  We  pass  Wallingford,  where  Sir 
William  Blackstone  is  interred  in  St.  Peter's  Church, 
and  Goring,  and  come  to  Pangbourne  and  Whit- 
church, where  the  little  river  Pang  flows  in  between 
green  hills.  Each  village  has  the  virtue  that  Dr. 
Johnson  extolled  when  he  said  that  "  the  finest  land- 
scape in  the  world  is  improved  by  a  good  inn  in  the 
foreground."  Then  we  come  to  Mapledurham  and 
Purley,  where  Warren  Hastings  lived,  and  finally 
halt  at  Caversham,  known  as  the  port  of  Reading. 
Here  the  Thames  Avidens,  and  here  in  the  olden  time 
M'as  the  little  chapel  with  a  statue  of  the  Virgin 
known  as  the  "  Lady  of  Caversham,"  Avhich  was  re- 
puted to  have  Avrought  many  miracles  and  was  the 
shrine  for  troops  of  pilgrims.  In  Cromwell's  day  the 
chapel  was  pulled  down,  and  the  statue,  which  was 
plated  over  with  silver,  was  boxed  up  and  sent  to  the 
Lord  Protector  in  London.  They  also  had  here 
many  famous  relics,  among  them  the  spear-head  that 
pierced  the  Saviour's  side,  which  had  been  brought 
there  by  a  "  one-winged  angel."  The  officer  who 
destroyed  the  chapel,  in  Avriting  a  report  of  the  de- 
struction to  Cromwell,  expressed  his  regret  at  hav- 
ing missed  among  the  relics  '^  a  piece  of  the  holy 
baiter  Judas  was  hanged  withal."      Lord   Cadogan 


224    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

subsequently  built  Caversliam  House  for  his  resi- 
dence. Reading,  which  is  the  county-town  of  Berk- 
sliire,  is  not  far  away  from  Caversham,  and  is  now  a 
thriving  manufacturing  city,  its  most  interesting  relic 
being  the  hall  of  the  ancient  Reading  Abbey,  built 
seven  hundred  years  ago.  It  was  one  of  the  wealtii- 
iest  in  the  kingdom,  and  several  parliaments  sat  in 
the  hall.  The  ruins,  still  carefully  preserved,  show 
its  extent  and  fine  Norman  architecture. 

The  Thames  flows  on  past  Sonning,  where  the 
Kennet  joins  it,  a  stream  "  for  silver  eels  renowned," 
as  Pope  tells  us.  Then  the  Lodden  comes  in  from 
the  south,  and  we  enter  the  fine  expanse  of  Ilenloy 
Reach,  famous  for  boat-racing.  It  is  a  beautiful 
sheet  of  water,  though  the  university  race  is  now 
rowed  farther  down  the  river  and  nearer  London,  at 
Putney.  Henley  is  the  Mecca  of  boating-men  on 
the  Thames,  and  its  regattas  attract  many  thousands 
of  visitors.  It  was  on  a  window  of  the  Red  Lion 
Inn  at  Henley  that  Shenstone  wrote  his  famous 
lines : 

"  Whoe'er  li.xs  travelled  life's  dull  round, 
Where'er  his  stages  may  have  been, 
^lay  sigh  to  tliink  he  still  luis  found 
Tiie  warmest  welcome  at  an  inn." 

Our  boat  now  drifts  with  the  stream  through  one  of 
the  most  beautiful  portions  of  the  famous  river,  past 
3Iedmenhani  Abbey  and  Clievedcn  to  Maidenhead. 
Here  for  about  ten  miles  is  a  succession  of  beauties 


THE  VICAR  OF  BRAY.  225 

of  scenery  over  Avood  and  cliff  and  water  that  for 
tranquil  loveliness  cannot  be  surpassed  anywhere. 
AVho  has  not  heard  of  the  charming  rocks  and  hang- 
ing woods  of  Clieveden,  with  the  Duke  of  AVest- 
minster's  mansion  standing  on  their  pinnacle  ? 
Clieveden  is  now  the  residence  of  William  Wal- 
dorf Astor. 

THE    VICAR   OF   BRAY. 

AVe  come  to  Alaidenhead  and  Taplow,  with  Brunei's 
masterpiece  of  bridge-building  connecting  them,  its 
elliptical  brick  arches  being  the  broadest  of  their 
kind  in  the  kingdom.  Another  bridge  also  here 
spans  the  Thames.  Below  this,  as  beauties  decrease, 
wc  are  compensated  by  scenes  of  greater  historical 
interest.  Koar  Alaidenhead  is  Bisham  Abbey,  the 
most  interesting  house  in  Berkshire.  It  was  origin- 
ally a  convent,  and  here  lived  Sir  Thomas  Russel, 
who  at  one  time  was  the  custodian  of  the  princess 
Elizabeth.  He  treated  her  so  well  that  she  warmly 
Avclcomed  him  at  court  after  becoming  queen.  Bisham 
is  a  favorite  scene  for  artists  to  sketch.  Bray 
Church,  where  officiated  the  famous  ''  Vicar  of  Bray," 
Symond  Symonds  Aleyn,  who  died  in  1588,  is  below 
Maidenhead.  This  lively  and  politic  vicar  lived  in 
the  troubled  times  of  King  Henry  AIH.,  Edward 
VI.,  Queen  Mary,  and  Queen  Elizabeth.  Having 
seen  martyrs  burnt  at  AVindsor,  but  two  miles  off, 
he  found  tlie  fires  too  hot  for  his  tender  temper,  and 
Vol.  I.— 15 


226   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

therefore  three  times  changed  his  religion  whenever 
events  changed  liis  sovereign.  When  taxed  with 
being  a  religious  changeling,  his  shrewd  answer 
was,  *'  Not  so,  for  I  always  keep  my  principle,  Avhich 
is  this — to  live  and  to  die  the  Vicar  of  13ray."  The 
old  church,  nestling  among  the  trees,  is  attractive, 
and  we  are  told  that  an  ancient  copy  of  Foxe's  Hook 
of  MartyrSj  which  was  chained  to  the  reading-desk 
in  Queen  Elizabeth's  time,  is  still  preserved  here 
for  the  edification  of  the  faithful.  To  the  north- 
ward of  the  river  beyond  the  town  of  High  Wy- 
combe is  liughenden  Manor,  which  from  1847  until 
his  death  in  1881  was  the  home  of  Benjamin  Dis- 
raeli, the  Earl  of  Bcaconsfield,  the  great  premier  of 
England,  who  established  the  modern  British  Im- 
perial policy  and  created  the  qucon  the  Kaiser  I. 
Hind,  or  Empress  of  India.  He  is  buried  in  the 
village  church,  where  Queen  Victoria  erected  a  monu- 
ment to  his    memory. 

i:Tf»X   COLLEGE. 

Soon  the  famous  Eton  College  comes  into  view  on 
the  northern  bank  of  the  river — an  institution  dear 
to  the  memory  of  many  English  schoolboys.  The 
village  consists  of  a  long,  narrow  street  which  is 
extended  across  an  iron  bridge  to  Windsor,  on  the 
southern  bank  of  the  Thames.  Henry  VI.  founded 
the  "  College  of  the  Blessed  Mary  of  Eton  beside 
Windsor  "  as  early  as  1440.     The  older  parts  of  the 


ETON  COLLEGE.  227 

buildings  are  of  red  brick,  with  stone  dressings  and 
quaint,  liiglily  ornamental  chimneys,  and  they  are 
clustered  around  two  quadrangles.  Here  are  the 
Lower  and  Upper  Schools  and  the  Long  Chamber. 
Over  fifty  years  ago  fine  new  buildings  were  erected 
in  similar  style  to  the  old  buildings,  which  provide  a 
beautiful  chapel,  schools,  librarj',  and  extensive 
dormitories.  Adjoining  them  to  the  north-east  are 
the  Playing  Fields  on  the  broad  green  meadows 
along  the  river's  edge,  with  noble  elms  shading 
them.  In  the  Upper  School  of  the  ancient  structure 
high  wooden  panelling  covers  the  lower  part  of  the 
walls,  deeply  scarred  with  the  names  of  generations 
of  Eton  boys  crowded  closely  together.  In  earlier 
times  all  used  to  cut  their  names  in  the  wood,  but 
now  this  sculpturing  is  only  permitted  to  those  who 
attain  a  certain  position,  and  leave  Avithout  dishonor. 
Thus  the  panelling  has  become  a  gi^eat  memorial 
tablet,  and  above  it,  upon  brackets,  are  busts  of  some 
of  the  more  eminent  Etonians,  including  the  Duke 
of  Wellington,  Pitt,  Fox,  llallam.  Fielding,  and 
Gray.  In  the  library  are  kept  those  instruments  of 
chastisement  which  are  always  considered  a  part  of 
schoolboy  training,  though  a  cupboard  hides  them 
•from  view — all  but  the  block  whereon  the  victim 
kneels  preliminary  to  punishment.  More  than  once 
have  the  uproarious  boys  made  successful  raids  and 
destroyed  this  block  or  carried  it  off  as  a  trophy. 
But  vigorous  switchinjr  was  more  a  habit  at  Eton  in 


228    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DICSCRirilVE. 

former  days  tlian  it  is  now.  Of  I  lead-master  Keate, 
Avho  was  a  famous  flogger  a  half  century  ago,  and 
who  would  frequently  practise  on  a  score  of  boys  at 
one  seance,  the  scholars  made  a  calculation  to  prove 
that  he  spent  twice  as  much  time  in  chastisement  as 
in  church,  and  it  is  recorded  that  he  once  flogged  an 
entire  division  of  eighty  boys  without  an  intermis- 
sion. On  another  occasion  he  flogged,  by  mistake, 
a  party  who  had  been  sent  him  for  confirmation. 
Tall  stories  are  also  told  of  Eton  flogging  and  ''  rug- 
riding" — the  latter  being  a  process  whereby  a  heavy 
boy  was  dragged  on  a  rug  over  the  floors  to  polish 
them.  Down  to  1840  the  Eton  dinners  consisted  en- 
tirely of  mutton,  with  cold  mutton  served  up  for 
supper,  but  this  regulation  diet  is  now  varied  with 
an  occasional  service  of  beef  and  other  courses. 
Games  are  no  inconsiderable  part  of  the  English 
schoolboy's  education,  and  the  Duke  of  Wellington 
said  that  in  the  "  Playing  Fields  "  of  Eton  the  battle 
of  Waterloo  was  won.  These  fields,  ^'  where  all  un- 
conscious of  their  doom  the  little  victims  play,"  con- 
tain one  of  the  finest  cricket-grounds  in  England. 
The  boys  divide  themselves  into  "dry  bobs"  and 
"  wet  bobs,"  the  former  devoted  to  cricket  and  the 
latter  to  boating.  The  procession  of  the  boats  is  the 
great  feature  of  .Tune  4th,  the  ''  Speech  Day."  Of 
late  years  the  Eton  volunteer  corps  has  attained  great 
proficiency,  being  a  battalion  of  over  three  hundred 
of  the  larger  boys.     This  famous  college  is  one  of 


WINDSOR  CASTLE.  229 

the  preparatory  schools  for  tlie  universities.  It  is  a 
Avorld  in  miniature,  Avhere  the  boy  finds  his  own 
level,  and  is  taught  lessons  of  endurance,  patience, 
self-control,  and  independence  which  stand  him  in 
good  service  throughout    after-life. 

WINDSOR    CASTLE. 

Across  the  Thames,  on  the  southern  bank,  the 
antique  and  noble  towers  of  Windsor  Castle  now 
rise  high  above  the  horizon.  This  is  the  sovereign's 
rural  court,  and  is  probably  the  best  known  by  the 
Avorld  of  all  the  English  castles.  The  name  is  given 
various  derivations :  some  ascribe  it  to  the  river's 
winding  course  ;  others  to  "  Wind  us  over,"  in  allu- 
sion to  a  rope-ferry  there  in  ancient  times ;  others  to 
"  Wind  is  sore,"  as  the  castle  stands  high  and  open 
to  the  weather.  From  the  Saxon  days  Windsor  has 
been  a  fortress,  but  the  present  castle  owes  its  be- 
ginning to  P^dward  III.,  Avho  Avas  born  at  Windsor 
and  built  its  earliest  parts,  commencing  Avith  the 
great  Round  Tower  in  1315.  The  ransoms  of  tAvo 
captive  kings,  John  of  France  and  David  of  Scot- 
land, paid  for  the  two  higher  AA-ards.  It  AA'as  at 
^Mndsor  that  King  Edward  instituted  the  Order  of 
the  Garter,  Avliich  is  the  highest  British  order  of 
knighthood.  Being  impressed  with  the  charms  of 
Alice,  Countess  of  Salisbury,  but  she  resisting  his 
advances,  out  of  the  gallantries  of  their  coquetry 
came  the  circumstance  of  the  king's  picking  up  her 


230   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

garter  dropped  at  a  ball  and  presenting  it  to  her. 
Some  of  the  nobles  smiled  at  this,  which  the  king 
noticing,  said,  "  Iloni  soit  qui  mal  y  pensc  "  ("Evil 
be  to  him  who  evil  thinks "),  adding  that  shortly 
they  would  sec  that  garter  advanced  to  such  high 
renown  as  to  be  happy  to  wear  it.  Froissart,  in 
giving  the  legend  telling  of  this  institution  of  the 
Garter,  says  that  it  rose  out  of  the  chivalrous  self- 
denial  tliat  leads  virtue  to  subdue  passion.  Henry 
VI.  was  born  at  Windsor;  Edward  IV.  added  St. 
George's  Chapel  to  the  castle  ;  Henry  VII.  built  the 
Tomb  House,  and  Henry  VIII.  the  gateway  to  the 
Lower  AVard ;  Queen  Elizabeth  added  the  gallery  of 
the  north  terrace  ;  and  in  Charles  II. 's  reign  the 
fortress,  which  it  had  been  until  that  time,  Avas  con- 
verted into  a  sort  of  French  })alace.  Thus  it  re- 
mained until  George  1\'.,  in  1824,  planned  a 
thorough  restoration,  wliich  was  coinjileted  in  the 
early  years  of  Queen  Victoria's  reign  at  a  cost  of 
$4,500,000.  The  great  gateways  arc  known  as 
Henry  \'lll.'s,  St.  George's,  and  King  George  IV. 's, 
wiiile  within  is  the  Norman  or  Queen  Elizabeth's 
Gate.  The  Round  Tower  or  Keep  was  built  for  the 
assemblage  of  a  fraternity  of  knights  which  King 
Edward  intended  to  model  after  King  Arthur's 
"  Knights  of  the  Round  Table,"  but  the  project 
was  abandoned  after  the  institution  of  the  Order  of 
the  Garter. 

The    Hound    Tower    stands     upon    an    artificial 


"Cdin^gor  Castle,  East  jfront. 


WINDSOR  CASTLE.  231 

Riound,  and  what  was  formerly  its  surrounding  ditcli 
is  now  a  sunken  garden.  From  its  conmianding 
battlements  twelve  counties  can  be  seen,  and  the 
Prince  of  Wales  is  constable  of  this  tower,  as  indeed 
of  the  whole  castle.  This  line  old  keep  was  the 
castle-prison  from  the  time  of  Edward  III.  to  that 
of  Charles  II.  The  poet-king,  James  I.  of  Scot- 
land, captured  when  ten  years  old  by  Henry  IV., 
was  the  first  prisoner  of  note.  Here  he  fell  in  love 
with  Jane  Beaufort,  daughter  of  the  Duke  of  Somer- 
set, and  he  tells  in  a  quaint  poem  the  romance  which 
ended  in  her  becoming  his  queen.  Henry  Howard, 
Earl  of  Surrey,  brought  to  the  block  by  Henry 
VIII. ,  was  also  confined  there,  and  he  too  lamented 
his  captivity  in  poetry.  From  the  top  of  the  keep 
the  dome  of  St.  Paul's  in  London  can  bo  seen.  The 
castle  was  mercilessly  plundered  in  the  Civil  Wars, 
till  Cromwell  interfered  for  its  protection.  In  its 
present  condition  the  castle  has  three  grand  divisions 
in  the  palatial  parts — the  state  apartments,  looking 
north  ;  the  queen's  private  apartments,  looking  cast ; 
and  the  visitors'  apartments,  looking  south.  The 
south  and  cast  sides  of  the  quadrangle  contain  over 
three  hundred  and  seventy  rooms.  Soutlnvard  of 
the  castle  is  the  Windsor  Great  Park,  to  wdiich  the 
"  Long  Walk,"  said  to  be  the  finest  avenue  of  the 
kind  in  Europe,  runs  in  a  straight  line  for  three 
miles  from  the  principal  entrance  of  the  castle  to  the 
top  of  a  commanding  eminence   in   the  park  called 


232    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Snow  Hill.  Double  rows  of  stately  elms  border  the 
"  Long  Walk  "  on  either  hand,  and  it  terminates  at 
the  fine  bronze  equestrian  statue  of  George  III., 
standing  on  the  highest  part  of  Snow  Hill. 

St.  George's  Chapel,  a  beautiful  structure  of  the 
Perpendicular  Gothic,  was  begun  four  hundred  years 
ago,  and  contains  the  tomb  of  Edward  IV.,  who 
built  it.  In  1789,  more  than  three  hundred  years 
after  his  interment,  the  h'aden  coffin  of  the  king  was 
found  in  laying  a  new  pavement.  The  skeleton  is 
said  to  have  been  seven  feet  long,  and  Horace  Wal- 
})olc  got  a  lock  of  the  king's  hair.  Here  also  lie 
Henry  VI.,  Henry  VIII.,  and  Charles  I.  The 
latter's  coffin  was  opened  in  1813,  and  the  king's 
remains  were  found  in  fair  preservation.  The  close 
comp.anionship  of  Henry  VHI.  and  Charles  in  death 
is  thus  described  by  JJyron  : 

"  Famed  for  contemptuous  breach  of  sacred  ties, 
By  headless  Charles  see  heartless  Henry  lies." 

The  tradition  of  '^  Heme  the  Hunter,"  which 
Shakespeare  gives  in  the  Merry  Wiics  of  Windsor, 
is  said  to  be  founded  on  the  fact  that  Heme,  a 
keeper  of  Windsor  Forest,  having  committed  some 
offence,  hanged  himself  upon  an  oak  tree.  His 
ghost  afterwards  was  to  be  seen,  with  horns  on  its 
liead,  walking  around  about  this  oak  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  the  castle.  Near  by  on  the  Thames  is  that 
co-sy  inn,  the  Bells  of  Ouseley. 


SOME  KIVER-SCENES.  233 

SOME   RIVER-SCENES. 

Just  below  Windsor  is  the  village  of  Datcliet, 
which  was  the  scene  of  Sir  John  FalstafF's  experi- 
ences with  the  "  Merry  "\\'ives  of  Windsor/'  and 
now  its  inns  are  a  favorite  resort  of  anglers.  Not 
far  beyond  the  Thames  passes  between  Kunnimede, 
the  "  Meadow  of  Council,"  where  the  barons  en- 
camped, in  1215,  and  Magna  Charta  Island,  where 
King  John  signed  the  great  charter  of  English 
liberty.  The  river  sweeps  in  a  tranquil  bend 
around  the  wooded  isle,  where  a  pretty  little  cottage 
has  been  built  which  is  said  to  contain  the  very 
stone  whereon  the  charter  was  signed.  On  the 
southern  shore  is  the  broad  liunnimede  meadow, 
with  a  backirround  of  hills  enclosing  the  view.  The 
river  Coin  now  falls  into  the  Thames,  and  "  London 
Stone "  marks  the  entrance  to  ^Middlesex  and  the 
domain  of  the  metropolis.  We  pass  Staines  and 
near  it  Laleham,  where  Dr.  Thomas  Arnold  lived 
before  he  became  the  head-master  of  Rugby,  and 
where  ^latthcw  Arnold  was  born  in  1822,  and,  dying 
in  1888,  is  buried.  Then  we  come  to  Chertsey, 
where  the  poet  Cowley  lived,  in  a  house  still  standing, 
which  has  an  inscription  recording  his  death  there  in 
1667,  and  then  on  the  I'ight  hand  the  river  Wey 
comes  in  at  Weybridge.  ]\lany  villages  are  passed, 
and  at  a  bend  in  the  Thames  is  the  place  where 
Caesar  with  his  legions  forded  the  river  at  Cowey 


234   KXCJLAND,  PICTURESQUE   AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Stakes,  clcfoatcd  Cassivelaunus,  and  conquered  Brit- 
ain. In  his  Commentaries  Julius  Caesar  writes  tliat  he 
led  his  arjny  to  the  Thames,  -which  could  be  crossed 
on  foot  at  one  jdace  only,  and  there  with  difficulty. 
On  arriving,  he  perceived  great  forces  of  the  enemy 
drawn  up  on  the  opposite  bank,  which  was  fortified 
by  sharp  stakes  set  along  the  margin,  a  similar 
stockade  being  fixed  in  ti»e  bed  of  the  river  and 
covered  by  the  stream.  These  facts  being  as- 
certained from  prisoners  and  deserters,  Cajsar  sent 
the  cavalry  in  front  and  ordered  the  legions  to  follow 
iunnediately.  The  soldiers  advanced  with  such  im- 
petuosity, although  up  to  their  necks  in  the  water, 
that  the  ]5ritons  could  not  withstand  the  onset  and 
fled.  A  couple  of  miles  below,  at  Plampton,  Garrick 
lived  in  a  mansion  fronted  by  a  rotunda  with  a 
Grecian  portico,  dying  in  1779.  ^^'e  pass  Hampton 
Court  and  Husluy  Park,  which  revive  memories  of 
Wolsey,  (Jromwell,  and  William  111.,  and  then  on 
tlu;  opposite  bank  sec  the  two  charming  Dittons — 
"  Thames  "  and  "  Long  "  Ditton — of  which  Theodore 
Hook  has  written  : 

"When    sultry  suns   and   dusty  streets   proclaim  town's   'winter 

sciLs<in,' 
And  rural  scenes  and  C(X)1  retreats  sound  soinetiiing  like  high 

treason, 
I  steal  away  to  shades  serene  wliich  yet  no  bard  has  hit  on, 
And    change   the    bustling,    heartlesa   scene    for   quietude    and 

Dillon. 


LONDON.  235 

"Here,  in  a  placid  waking  dream,  I'm  free  from  worldly  troubles, 
Calm  as  the  rippling  silver  stream  that  in  the  sunshine  bubbles  ; 
And  when  sweet  Eden's  blissful  bowers  some  abler   bard   has 

writ  on, 
Despairing  to  transcend  his  powers,  I'll  ditto  say  for  Ditton." 

Tlicn  Ave  pass  Kingston,  where  several  Saxon  kings 
Avero  crowned,  and  the  coronation-stone,  marked 
Avith  their  names,  it  is  said,  still  remains  in  the 
market-place.  Teddington  Lock  is  the  last  upon 
the  Thames,  and  a  mile  beloAv  is  Eel-Pie  Island,, 
lying  off  Twickenham,  renoAvned  for  the  romance  that 
surrounds  its  ancient  ferry.  Near  here  lived  the 
eccentric  Horace  Walpole,  at  StraAvbcrry  Hill,  Avhile 
in  Twickenham  Church  is  the  monument  to  the  poet 
Pope,  Avhich  states  in  its  inscription  that  he  Avould  not 
be  buried  in  Westminster  Abbey.  Pope's  villa  no 
longer  exists,  and  only  a  relic  of  his  famous  grotto 
remains.  The  Avidening  Thames,  properly  named 
the  Broadwater,  noAv  SAveeps  on  to  Kichmond,  and  if 
that  far-fiimed  hill  is  climbed,  it  discloses  one  of  the 
finest  river-vicAvs  in  the  Avorld. 

LONDOX. 

Here  ends  the  romantic  portion  of  the  Thames. 
The  beauty  of  Nature  is  no  longer  present,  being 
overtopped  by  the  stir  and  roar  of  the  great  Babel, 
for  the  metropolis  has  reached  out  and  SAAalloAA'ed  up 
the  suburban  villages,  although  some  of  the  pictu- 
resque scenes  remain.     Many  bridges  span  the  rivcr^ 


236    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Avliich  on  citlicr  hand  gradually  transforms  its 
garden-bordered  banks  into  the  city  buildings,  and 
the  Thames  itself  bears  on  its  bosom  the  valuable 
commerce  that  has  chiefly  made  the  great  capital. 
When  King  James  I.  threatened  recalcitrant  London 
with  the  removal  of  his  court  to  Oxford,  the  lord 
mayor  sturdily  yet  sarcastically  replied,  "  May  it 
please  Your  Majesty,  of  your  grace,  not  to  take 
away  the  Thames  too  ?"  This  river,  so  beautiful  in 
its  upper  loveliness,  stands  alone  in  the  far-reaching 
influence  of  the  commerce  that  its  lower  waters 
bear.  It  has  borne  us  from  the  Cotswolds  to 
London  ;  while  to  describe  properly  the  great  city 
Avould  take  volumes  in  itself.  Without  attempting 
such  a  task,  we  will  only  give  a  brief  sunnnary  of 
some  of  the  more  striking  objects  of  interest  that 
the  great  IJritish   metropolis  present's. 

The  origin  of  the  vast  city  is  obscure.  It  was  a 
British  settlement  before  the  Romans  came  to  Eng- 
land, and  its  name  of  Llyn  Dyn,  the  "  City  of  the 
Lake,''  was  transformed  by  the  conquerors  into 
Londinium.  When  Cyesar  crossed  the  TJjamcs  lie 
thought  the  settlement  of  too  little  importance  for 
mention,  and  it  does  not  seem  to  have  been  occupied 
as  a  lioman  station  until  a  century  afterwards,  and 
was  not  walled  round  until  A.  i).  306.  The  old  wall 
Avas  about  three  miles  in  circumference,  beginning 
near  the  present  site  of  the  Tower,  and  some  slight 
traces    of    it   remain.      The    "  London   Stone "   on 


LOXDOX.  237 

Cannon  Street  Wcas  the  central  stone  or  miUiarium 
from  which  distances  were  measured  and  the  great 
Roman  liighways  started.  A  worn  fragment  of  this 
stone,  protected  by  iron  bars,  now  stands  against  the 
wall  of  St.  Swithin's  Church.  When  Jake  Cade 
entered  London,  Shakespeare  tells  us,  he  struck  his 
sword  on  this  stone  and  exclaimed,  "  Xow  is 
3Iortimer  lord  of  this  city."  ^^'ren  caused  it  to  be 
encased,  for  protection,  Avith  a  new  stone  hollowed 
for  the  purpose  ;  it  now  stands  very  near  its 
original  position.  London  in  the  sixth  century 
became  the  capital  of  the  Saxon  kingdom  of  Essex, 
and  in  the  ninth  century  the  Danes  destroyed  it. 
King  Alfred  a  few  years  afterwai'ds  rebuilt  London, 
but  it  stood  barely  seven  years  when  it  was  burned. 
Finally,  it  was  again  rebuilt,  and  again  captured  by 
tlie  Danes,  Canute  setting  himself  up  as  king  there. 
Some  relics  of  tliese  Danes  remain.  St.  Olaf  was 
tlieir  saint,  and  Tooley  Street  is  but  a  corruption  of 
liis  name.  They  had  a  church  and  burial-place 
where  now  St.  Clement-Danes  stands  awry  on  the 
Strand — a  church  that  is  of  interest  not  oidy  on  its 
own  account,  but  for  the  venerable  antiquity  it 
represents.  The  Saxons  drove  out  the  Danes,  and 
the  Normans  in  turn  conquered  the  Saxons,  the 
Tower  of  London  coming  down  to  us  as  a  relic  of 
William  the  Conqueror,  who  granted  the  city  the 
charter  which  is  still  extant.  Henry  I.  gave  it  a 
new  charter,  which  is  said  to  have  been  the  model 


238    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCllIPTIVE. 

for  Jfaf/na  Charta.  In  the  twelfth  century  London 
attained  the  dignity  of  having  a  lord  mayor.  It 
sided  with  the  House  of  York  in  the  Wars  of  the 
Iloses,  and  in  Elizab(!th's  reign  had  about  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  thousand  j)opulation,  being  then  about 
two  miles  south  of  AA'^estniinster,  with  fields  between, 
and  having  the  Tower  standing  apart  from  the  city 
farther  down  tiie  Thames.  The  plague  devastated 
it  in  1665,  carrying  off  sixty  thousand  persons,  and 
next  year  the  Great  Fire  occurred,  which  destroyed 
five-sixths  of  the  city  within  the  walls,  and  burned 
during  four  days.  This  fire  began  at  Pudding  Lane, 
Monument  Yard,  and  ended  at  Pic  Corner,  Giltspur 
Street.  To  connnemorate  the  calamity  the  Mon- 
ument was  erected  on  Fish  Street  Hill,  on  the  site 
of  St.  Margaret's  Church,  which  was  destroyed.  It 
is  a  fluted  Doric  cohnnn  of  Portland  stone,  erected 
by  Wren  at  a  cost  of  870,000,  and  is  two  hundred 
and  two  feet  high.  The  inscriptions  on  the  pedestal 
record  the  destruction  and  restoration  of  the  city; 
and  down  to  the  year  1831  there  was  also  an  in- 
scription untruthfully  attributing  the  fire  to  ''  the 
treachery  and  malice  of  the  popish  faction  ;"  this 
has  been  effaced,  and  to  it  Pope's  couplet  alluded : 

"  Wlierc  London's  column,  pointing  to  the  skies, 
Like  a  tall  bully  lifts  its  head  and  lies." 

A  vase  of  flames  forty-two  feet  high,  made  of  gilt 
bronze,  crowns  the  apex,  up  to  which  leads  a  wind- 


LONDON.  239 

ing  staircase  of  three  hundred  and  forty-five  steps. 
The  structure  has  often  been  compared  to  a  lighted 
candle,  and  the  balcony  at  the  top,  having  been 
selected  as  a  favorite  place  for  suicides  to  jump  from, 
is  now  encased  with  iron-work  to  prevent  this. 

London  was  rebuilt  in  four  years  after  the  Great 
Fire,  and  the  first  stone  of  the  ncAv  St.  Paul's  was 
laid  in  1G75,  when  the  city  had,  with  the  outlying  par- 
ishes, a  half  million  population.  Its  growth  was  slow 
until  after  the  American  Revolution,  and  it  began  the 
present  century  with  about  eight  hundred  thousand 
people.  The  past  hundred  years  have  witnessed 
giant  strides,  and  it  has  made  astonishing  progress 
in  the  elegance  of  its  parks  and  new  streets  and  the 
growth  of  adornments  and  improvements  of  all  kinds. 
London  has  become,  in  fact,  a  world  within  itself, 
and  has  practically  doubled  in  size  within  the  last 
half-century,  embracing  portions  of  four  counties — 
Middlesex,  Essex,  Kent,  and  Surrey — covering  about 
one  hundred  and  twenty-two  squai'e  miles,  and  being 
about  fifteen  miles  long  from  east  to  west,  and  nine 
miles  wide  from  north  to  south.  The  population  in 
1891  Avas  4,211,056  by  tlie  British  census  of  that 
year.  Tlie  area  included  in  the  "  Metropolitan  Police 
District,"  a  radius  of  fifteen  miles  around  Charing 
Cross,  is  six  hundred  and  ninety  square  miles,  partly 
rural,  and  its  population  (5,633,332  in  1891)  is  now 
in  excess  of  six  millions.  The  larger  portion  of 
London  is  on  the  northern  side  of  the  Thames. 


240  ENGLA>'D,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 


ST.    PAUL'S    CATHEDRAL. 

Among  a  multitude  of  famous  objects  in  London, 
throe  stand  out  boldly  prominent — St.  Paul's  Ca- 
thedral, Westminster  Abbey,  and  the  ToAver.  St. 
Paul's,  the  cathedral  church  of  the  bishops  of  Lon- 
don, is  the  finest  building  in  the  Italian  style  in  Great 
Britain  5  but,  unfortunately,  in  consequence  of  the 
nearness  of  the  surrounding  houses,  no  complete 
general  view  is  attainable.  The  first  church  was 
built  there  by  King  Ethelbert  in  GIO ;  it  was  de- 
stroyed by  fire  in  the  eleventh  century,  and  then  old 
St.  Paul's  was  built,  suffering  repeatedly  from  fire 
and  lightning,  and  being  finally  destroyed  by  the 
Great  Fire  of  1066.  It  was  a  large  church,  with  a 
spire  rising  five  hundred  and  twenty  feet.  The 
money-lenders  and  small  dealers  plied  their  vocations 
in  its  middle  aisle,  known  as  Paul's  AValk,  while 
tradesj)eoj)le  took  possession  of  the  vaults  and 
cloisters,  a  baker  made  A  hole  in  a  buttress  for  his 
bakeoven,  and  several  buildings  were  planted  against 
the  outer  Avails,  one  being  used  as  a  theatre.  The 
ruins  were  not  disturbed  for  eight  years  after  the  fire, 
Avhen  Wren  began  rebuilding,  the  cathedral  being 
finished  in  thirty-five  years,  in  1710.  The  architect, 
bishop,  and  master-mason  who  laid  the  corner-stone 
were  all  living  at  the  completion — a  singular  circum- 
stance. Wren  got  $1000  a  year  salary,  and  for  this, 
said  the  Duchess  of  Marlborough,  he  was  content  to 


ST.  PAUL'S  CATHEDRAL.  241 

be  dragged  up  to  the  top  in  a  basket  three  or  four 
times  a  Aveek.  The  building  cost  $3,740,000,  chiefly 
raised  by  subscription.  It  is  the  fifth  of  the  churches 
of  Christendom  in  size,  being  excelled  by  St.  Peter's 
at  Rome,  and  the  cathedrals  at  Florence,  Amiens, 
and  Milan.  In  ground  plan  it  is  a  Latin  cross  five 
hundred  feet  long,  with  a  transept  of  two  hundred 
and  fifty  feet  in  length  ;  the  nave  and  choir  are  one 
hundred  and  twenty-five  feet  wide  and  the  sides  one 
hundred  feet  high.  The  majestic  dome,  Avhich  is  the 
glory  of  the  cathedral,  rises  three  hundred  and 
sixty-five  feet,  and  the  surmounting  lantern  carries 
a  gilded  copper  ball  and  cross.  The  gi'and  front 
towards  the  Avest,  facing  Ludgate  Hill,  is  approached 
by  a  double  flight  of  steps  from  an  area  AA'hich  con- 
tains a  statue  of  Queen  Anne.  The  portico  is  in 
two  divisions,  Avith  Corinthian  columns  supporting 
the  pediment,  Avhich  bears  a  bas-relief  of  the  con- 
version of  St.  Paul,  and  has  a  statue  of  St.  Paul  at 
the  apex,  Avith  statues  of  St.  Peter  at  the  sides. 
Bell-toAvers  rise  from  each  side  of  the  portico  to  a 
height  of  two  hundred  and  tAventy  feet,  surmounted 
by  domes.  The  large  bell,  "  Great  Paul,"  is  the 
heaviest  in  England,  Aveighing  nearly  seventeen  tons. 
AVithin  the  cathedral  the  cupola  has  a  diameter  of 
one  hundred  and  eight  feet,  and  rises  tAA'o  hundred 
and  tAventy-eight  feet  above  the  pavement ;  around 
it  runs  the  famous  Whispering  Gallery.  Beneath 
the  centre  of  the  pavement  lie  the  remains  of  Lord 
Vol.  I.— 16 


242   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Nelson  and  the  Duke  of  Wellington  in  the  crypt,  for 
8t.  Paul's  has  been  made  the  niausoleiun  of  British 
heroes  on  sea  and  land.  Here,  among  others,  are 
monuments  to  Napier,  Ponsonby,  Cornwallis,  Nelson, 
Howe,  Collingwood,  Pakenham,  Sir  John  Moore, 
Abercrombie,  Rodney,  St.  Vincent,  and  also  a  noble 
porphyry  mausoleum  for  the  Duke  of  Wellington, 
the  finest  monument  in  the  cathedral.  Some  of  the 
lieroes  of  peace  also  have  monuments  in  St.  Paul's, 
among  them  Dr.  Johnson,  Howard  the  philanthro- 
pist, Sir  Astley  Cooper  the  surgeon.  Bishop  iMiddle- 
ton,  Sir  Joshua  Reynolds,  Turner,  Ronnie  the  en- 
gineer, and  also  Wren.  The  memory  of  the  great 
architect  is  marked  by  a  nuirble  slab,  with  the  in- 
scription, "  ]\eadcr,  do  you  ask  his  monument  ? 
Look  around." 

The  outside  elevation  of  the  cathedral  is  of  two 
orders  of  architecture — the  lower,  Corinthian,  hav- 
ing Avindows  with  semicircular  headings,  while  the 
upper,  Composite,  has  niches  corresponding  to  the 
windows  below.  The  entablature  of  each  story  is 
supported  by  coupled  pilasters,  while  the  north  and 
south  Avails  are  surmounted  by  balustrades.  Each 
arm  of  the  transept  is  entered  by  an  external  semi- 
circular portico,  reached  by  a  lofty  staircase.  Above 
the  dome  is  the  Golden  Gallery,  whence  there  is  a 
grand  view  around  London,  if  the  atmosphere  per- 
mits, which  it  seldom  does.  Above  the  lantern  is  the 
ball,  weighing  fifty-six  hundred  pounds ;  above  this 


WESTMINSTER  ABBEY.  243 

the  cross,  weighing  thirty-three  hundred  and  sixty 
pounds. 

WESTMINSTER    ABBEY. 

This  is  the  most  renowned  churcli  in  England,  for 
in  it  her  sovereigns  have  been  crowned,  and  many  of 
them  buried,  from  the  days  of  Harold  to  Victoria, 
and  it  contains  the  graves  of  her  greatest  men  in 
statesmanship,  literature,  science,  and  art.  The 
abbey  is  the  collegiate  church  of  St.  Peter's,  West- 
minster, and  stands  not  far  away  from  the  Thames, 
near  Westminster  Hall  and  the  Parliament  Houses. 
Twelve  hundred  years  ago  its  site  was  an  island  in 
the  Thames  known  as  Thorney  Island,  and  a  church 
was  commenced  there  by  Sebert,  king  of  Essex,  but 
was  not  completed  until  three  centuries  afterwards, 
in  the  reign  of  King  Edgar,  when  it  was  named  the 
^'  minster  west  of  St.  Paul's,"  or  AVestminster.  The 
Danes  destroyed  it,  and  Edward  the  Confessor  re- 
built it  in  the  eleventh  century.  Portions  of  this 
church  remain,  but  the  present  abbey  was  begun  by 
Henry  HI.  nearly  seven  hundred  years  ago,  and  it 
was  not  completed  imtil  Edward  HI.'s  time.  Henry 
VII.  removed  the  Lady  Chapel,  and  built  the  rich 
chapel  at  the  cast  end  which  is  named  after  him. 
Wren  ultimately  made  radical  changes  in  it,  and  in 
1740,  after  many  changes,  including  the  building  of 
the  towers,  the  abbey  finally  assumed  its  present 
form  and  appearance.  It  has  had  a  great  history, 
the   coronations  alone   that  it  has  witnessed  beinsr 


244  ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

marked  events.  Tliey  usually  were  followed  by 
banquets  in  Westminster  Hall,  but  over  SI, 300,000 
having  been  wasted  on  the  dis[)lay  and  banquet  for 
George  IV.,  the  banquets  were  discontinued  after- 
wards. At  Queen  Victoria's  coronation  the  crown 
was  imposed  in  front  of  the  altar  before  St.  Edward's 
Chapel,  the  entire  nave,  choir,  and  transepts  being 
filled  with  spectators,  the  queen  afterwards  sitting 
upon  a  chair  which,  witli  the  raised  platform  bearing 
it,  was  covered  with  a  cloth  of  gold.  Here  she  re- 
ceived the  homage  of  her  officers  and  the  nobility. 
The  ancient  coronation-chair,  which  is  probably  the 
greatest  curiosity  in  the  abbey,  is  a  most  unpre- 
tentious and  uncomfortable-looking  old  high-backed 
chair  with  a  hard  wooden  seat.  Every  sovereign 
of  England  has  been  crowned  in  it  since  Edward  I. 
There  is  a  similar  chair  alongside  it,  the  duplicate 
having  been  made  for  the  coronation  of  William  and 
j\Iary,  when  two  chairs  were  necessary,  as  both  king 
and  queen  were  crowned  and  vested  with  equal 
authority.  Underneath  the  seat  of  the  coronation- 
eliair  is  fastened  the  celebrated  Stone  of  Scone,  a 
dark-looking,  old,  rough,  and  worn-edged  rock  about 
two  feet  square  and  six  inches  thick.  All  sorts  of 
legends  are  told  of  it,  and  it  is  said  to  have  been  a 
])iece  of  Jacob's  Pillar.  Edward  I.  brought  it  from 
Scotland,  where  many  generations  had  done  it  rev- 
erence, and  the  old  chair  was  made  to  contain  it  in 
1297.     These  priceless  accessories  of  the  coronation 


WESTMINSTER  ABBEY.  245 

ceremony,  wliich  will  some  day  do  service  for  the 
Prince  of  Wales,  are  kept  alongside  the  tomb  of 
Edward  the  Confessor,  which  for  centuries  has  been 
the  shrine  of  pilgrims,  and  they  are  surrounded  by 
the  graves  of  scores  of  England's  kings  and  queens 
and  princes. 

The  abbey's  ground-plan  has  the  form  of  a  Latin 
cross,  which  is  apsidal,  having  radiating  chapels. 
Henry  VII.'s  Chapel  prolongs  the  building  eastward 
from  the  transept  almost  as  much  as  the  nave 
extends  westward.  Cloisters  adjoin  the  nave,  and 
the  western  towers,  designed  by  Wren,  rise  two 
hundred  and  twenty-five  feet,  with  a  grand  window 
beneath  them.  The  church  is  five  hundred  and 
thirty  feet  long.  The  nave  is  one  hundred  and 
sixty-six  feet  long  and  one  hundred  and  two  feet 
high ;  the  choir,  one  hundred  and  fifty-five  feet 
long;  the  transept,  two  hundred  and  three  feet  long, 
and  on  the  south  arm  one  hundred  and  sixty-five  feet 
high.  A  great  rose-window,  thirty  feet  in  diameter, 
is  in  the  north  end  of  the  transept,  Avith  a  fine 
portico,  beneath  which  is  the  beautiful  gateway  of 
the  abbey.  In  the  interior  the  height  of  the  roof  is 
remarkable,  and  also  the  vast  number  of  monuments, 
there  being  hundreds  of  them.  ]\[agnificent  wood- 
work in  carving  and  tracery  adorns  the  choir,  and 
its  mosaic  pavement  comes  down  to  us  from  the 
thirteenth  century,  the  stones  and  workmen  to  con- 
struct it  having  been  brought  from  Rome.     The  fine 


24G    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

stained-glass  windows  are  chiefly  modern.  But  tlie 
grand  contemplation  in  Westminster  Abbey  is  the 
graves  of  the  famous  dead  that  have  been  gatheriitg 
there  for  nearly  eight  centuries.  No  temple  in  the 
world  can  present  anything  like  it.  Wordsworth 
has  written : 

"  Re  mine  in  hours  of  fear 


Or  grovelling  thought  to  find  a  refuge  here, 
Or  through  the  aisles  of  Westminster  to  roam. 
Where  bubbles  burst,  and  folly's  dancing  foam 
Melts  if  it  cross  the  threshold— where  the  wreath 
Of  awestruck  wisdom  droops." 

Of  the  nine  chapels  surrounding  the  east  end  of 
the  abbey,  the  most  interesting  are  those  of  PMward 
the  Confessor,  beyond  the  altar,  and  of  Henry  VII., 
at  the  extreme  eastern  end.  The  shrine  of  King 
Edward  above  referred  to  occupies  the  centre  of  his 
chapel,  and  was  formerly  richly  inlaid  with  mosaics 
and  precious  stones,  which,  however,  have  been 
carried  off.  Henry  VI I. 's  Chapel  is  a  line  specimen 
of  the  architecture  of  his  time,  and  the  monuments 
of  Queens  Elizabeth  and  Mary  of  Scotland  are  in 
the  north  and  south  aisles.  In  the  south  transept  is 
the  Poets'  Corner,  with  monuments  to  all  the  great 
poets,  and  here,  as  well  as  in  nave  and  choir  and  the 
north  transept,  are  monuments  of  hundreds  of  illus- 
trious Enjjrlishmen.  In  making  these  burials  there 
is  a  sort  of  method  observed.  Chaucer's  interment 
in  the  Poets'  Corner  in  1400  led  the  south  transept 


WESTMINSTER  ABBEY.  247 

to  be  devoted  to  literary  men.  The  north  transept 
is  devoted  to  statesmen,  the  first  distinguished  burial 
there  being  tlie  elder  Pitt  in  1778.  The  organ  is  on 
the  north  side  of  the  nave,  and  here  the  eminent 
musicians  repose.  In  the  side  chapels  the  chief 
nobles  are  buried,  and  in  the  chancel  and  its  adjoin- 
ing chapels  the  sovereigns.  Isaac  Newton  in  1727 
was  the  first  scientist  buried  in  the  nave,  and  that 
part  has  since  been  devoted  to  scientific  men  and 
philanthropists.  Probably  the  finest  tomb  in  the 
abbey  is  that  of  the  elder  Pitt,  which  bears  the  in- 
scription, "  Erected  by  the  King  and  Parliament  as 
a  testimony  to  the  virtues  and  ability  of  AVilliam 
Pitt,  Earl  of  Chatham,  during  whose  administration, 
in  the  reigns  of  George  II.  and  George  III.,  Divine 
Providence  exalted  Great  Britain  to  a  height  of 
prosperity  and  glory  unknown  to  any  former  age." 
One  of  the  finest  of  the  stained-glass  windows  in  the 
nave  is  the  double  memorial  window  in  memory  of 
the  poets  Herbert  and  Cowper,  erected  by  an  Ameri- 
can, George  W.  Childs.  George  III.  and  the  Brit- 
ish sovereigns  since  his  reign  have  their  tombs  at 
Windsor,  preferring  that  noble  castle  for  their  last 
resting-place. 

Upon  the  north  side  of  the  abbey  is  St.  Margaret's, 
the  special  church  of  the  House  of  Commons.  Its 
east  window  contains  the  celebrated  stained-glass 
representation  of  the  Crucifixion,  painted  in  Holland, 
which  General  Monk  buried  to  keep  the  Puritans 


248   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

from  destroying  it.  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  is  entombed 
here,  and  an  American  subscription  has  placed  a 
stained-glass  window  in  the  church  to  his  memory, 
inscribed  with  these  lines  by  James  llussell  Lowell : 

"The  New  World's  sons,  from  England's  breasts  we  drew 
Such  milk  as  bids  remember  whence  we  came, 
Proud  of  her  past,  wlierefrom  our  present  grew, 
This  window  we  inscribe  with  Raleigh's  name." 

THE   TOWER    OF   LONDON. 

On  the  northern  bank  of  the  Thames,  standing  in 
a  somewhat  elevated  position  a  short  distance  east 
of  the  ancient  city-walls,  is  the  collection  of  build- 
ings known  as  the  Tower.  The  enclosure  covers 
about  twelve  acres,  encircled  by  a  moat  now  drained, 
and  a  battlemented  wall  from  which  towers  rise  at  in- 
tervals. Within  is  another  line  of  walls  with  towers, 
called  the  Inner  Ballium,  having  various  buildings 
interspersed.  In  the  enclosed  space,  rising  high 
above  all  its  surroundings,  is  the  great  square  White 
Tower,  which  was  the  keep  of  the  old  fortress. 
Tradition  assigns  a  very  early  date  to  this  stronghold, 
but  the  written  records  do  not  go  back  earlier  than 
William  the  Conqueror,  who  built  the  White  Tower 
about  1078.  It  was  enlarged  and  strengthened  by 
subsocjuont  kings,  and  Stephen  kept  his  court  there 
in  the  twelfth  century.  The  moat  was  made  about 
1190.  Edward  II.'s  daughter  was  born  there,  and 
was  known  as  Joan  of  the  Tower.     Edward  III.  im- 


THE  TOWER  OF  LONDON.  249 

prisoned  Kings  David  of  Scotland  and  John  of 
France  there.  Richard  II.  in  Wat  Tyler's  rebellion 
took  refuge  in  the  Tower  with  his  court  and  nobles, 
numbering  six  hundred  persons,  and  in  1399  was 
imprisoned  there  and  deposed.  Edward  IV.  kept  a 
splendid  court  in  the  Tower,  and  Henry  VI.,  after 
being  twice  a  prisoner  there,  died  in  the  Tower  in 
1471.  There  also  was  the  Duke  of  Clarence 
drowned  in  a  butt  of  Malmsey  wine,  and  the  two 
youthful  princes,  Edward  V.  and  his  brother,  were 
murdered  at  the  instance    of   Richard  III.     Henry 

VII.  made  the  ToAver  often  his  residence.     Henry 

VIII.  received  there  in  state  all  his  wives  before 
their  marriages,  and  two  of  them,  Anne  Boleyn  and 
Catharine  Howard,  were  beheaded  there.  Here  the 
Protector  Somerset,  and  afterwards  Lady  Jane  Grrey, 
were  beheaded.  The  princess  Elizabeth  Avas  im- 
prisoned in  the  Tower,  and  James  I.  avus  the  last 
English  sovereign  who  lived  there.  The  palace, 
having  become  ruinous,  was  ultimately  taken  down. 
The  Tower  during  the  eight  hundred  years  it  has 
existed  has  contained  a  legion  of  famous  prisoners, 
and  within  its  precincts  Chaucer,  who  held  an  office 
there  in  Richard  II.'s  reign,  composed  his  poem 
TJie  Testament  of  Love,  and  Sir  AValter  Raleigh 
wrote  his  History  of  the  World. 

The  "  Yeomen  of  the  Guard,"  a  corps  of  forty- 
eight  warders,  who  are  meritorious  soldiers,  dressed 
in  the  uniform  of  Henry  VIII. 's  reign  on  state  occa- 


250   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

sioiis,  and  at  other  times  wearing  black  velvet  hats 
and  dark-blue  tunics,  have  charge  of  the  exhibition 
of  the  Tower.  The  entrance  is  in  a  small  building 
on  the  Avestern  side,  where  years  ago  some  lions 
were  kept,  though  they  have  since  been  .all  sent  to 
the  London  Zoological  Garden.  From  this  origi- 
nated the  phrase  ''going  to  sec  the  lions."  At  the 
centre  of  the  river-front  is  the  "Traitor's  Gate," 
through  which  persons  charged  Avith  high  treason 
were  formerly  taken  into  the  Tower.  It  is  a  square 
building  erected  over  the  moat,  and  now  contains  a 
steam  pumping-engine.  Opposite  it  is  the  Bloody 
Tower,  where  the  young  princes  were  smothered 
and  where  Iialeigh  was  confined.  Adjoining  is  the 
"Wakefield  Tower,  with  walls  thirteen  feet  thick. 
Passing  through  the  IMoody  Tower  gateway  to  the 
interior  enclosure,  a  large  number  of  curious  guns 
are  seen,  and  the  Horse  Armory  at  the  base  of  the 
AVhite  Tower  is  filled  with  specimens  of  ancient 
armor  artistically  arranged.  In  this  collection  the 
systems  of  armor  can  be  traced  from  the  time  of 
Edward  I.  to  that  of  James  II.,  and  there  are  suits 
that  were  worn  by  several  famous  kings  and  war- 
riors. Above,  in  Queen  Elizabeth's  Armory,  is 
more  armor,  and  also  trophies  of  Waterloo  and  other 
battles,  and  a  collection  of  every  kind  of  weapon  in 
the  Tower.  There  are  also  specimens  of  instru- 
ments of  torture  and  many  other  curiosities  on  ex- 
hibition. 


THE  TOWER  OF  LONDON.  251 

The  White  Tower,  wliich  has  walls  fourteen  feet 
tliick  in  some  parts,  covers  a  space  one  hundred  and 
sixteen  by  ninety-six  feet,  and  is  ninety-two  feet 
high,  with  turrets  at  the  angles.  Each  floor  is 
divided  into  three  rooms,  with  stone  partitions  seven 
feet  thick.  On  the  second  floor  is  St.  John's  Chapel, 
and  on  the  third  the  council-chamber  of  the  early 
kings,  with  a  dark,  massive  timber  roof;  in  this 
chamber  Richard  II.  resigned  his  crown ;  it  is  now 
filled  with  a  vast  collection  of  arms.  The  Salt 
Tower,  which  is  at  an  angle  of  the  enclosure,  was 
formerly  a  prison.  The  crown  jewels  are  kept  in 
the  Wakefield  Tower ;  they  are  in  a  glass  case,  pro- 
tected by  an  iron  cage.  Queen  Victoria's  state 
crown,  made  in  1838,  after  her  coronation,  is  the 
chief.  It  consists  of  diamonds,  pearls,  sapphires, 
rubies,  and  emeralds  set  in  silver  and  gold,  and  has 
a  crimson  velvet  cap  with  carmine  border,  lined 
with  white  silk.  It  contains  the  famous  ruby  given 
to  Edward  the  Black  Prince  by  the  King  of  Castile, 
and  which  is  surrounded  by  diamonds  forming  a  Mal- 
tese cross.  The  jewels  in  this  crown  are  one  large 
ruby,  one  large  sapphire,  sixteen  other  sapphires, 
eleven  emeralds,  four  rubies,  one  thousand  three 
hundred  and  sixty-three  brilliant  diamonds,  one 
thousand  two  hundred  and  seventy-three  rose 
diamonds,  one  hundred  and  forty-seven  table  dia- 
monds, and  two  hundred  and  seventy-seven  pearls. 
Among  the  other  crowns  is  St.  Edward's  crown,  of 


252    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

gold  embellished  with  diamonds,  used  at  all  corona- 
tions, when  it  is  placed  upon  the  sovereign's  head  by 
the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury.  This  crown  was 
stolen  from  the  Tower  by  Blood  in  1761.  There  are 
also  the  Prince  of  AVales'  crown,  the  queen's  crown, 
the  queen's  diadem,  St.  Edward's  Staff,  four  feet 
seven  inches  long,  made  of  beaten  gold  and  sur- 
mounted by  an  orb  said  to  contain  part  of  the  true 
cross,  and  carried  before  the  sovereign  at  corona- 
tion ;  the  royal  sceptre  (surmounted  by  a  cross), 
which  the  archbishop  places  in  the  sovereign's  right 
hand  at  coronation  ;  the  rod  of  equity  (surmounted 
by  a  dove),  which  he  places  in  the  left  hand ;  several 
other  sceptres ;  the  pointless  sword  of  Mercy,  the 
swords  of  Justice,  and  the  sacred  vessels  used  at 
coronation.  Here  is  also  the  famous  Koh-i-noor 
diamond,  the  "  ^fountain  of  Light,"  which  was  t.ikcn 
at  Lahore  in  India.  The  ancient  Martin  or  Jewel 
Tower,  where  Anne  Boleyn  was  imprisoned,  is  near 
by ;  the  barracks  are  on  the  north  side  of  the 
Tower,  and  behind  them  are  the  Brick  and  Bowyer 
Towers,  in  the  former  of  Avhich  Lady  Jane  Grey 
was  imprisoned,  and  in  the  latter  the  Duke  of  Clar- 
ence was  drowned ;  but  only  the  basements  of  the 
old  towers  remain.  The  Tower  Chapel,  or  church 
of  St.  Peter's,  was  used  for  the  cemetery  of  the  dis- 
tinguished prisoners  who  Avere  beheaded  there,  and 
in  its  little  graveyard  lie  scores  of  headless  corpses, 
as  well  as  the  remains  of  several  constables  of  the 


THE  TOWER  OF  LONDON.  253 

Tower.  In  front  of  it  was  the  place  of  execution, 
marked  by  an  oval  of  dark  stones.  The  Beauchamp 
Tower  stands  at  the  middle  of  the  west  side  of  the 
fortress,  built  in  the  thirteenth  century  and  used  as 
a  prison ;  there  are  numerous  inscriptions  and  de- 
vices on  the  walls  made  by  the  prisoners.  Here 
Lady  Jane  Grey's  husband  carved  in  antique  letters 
"lane."  In  the  Bell  Tower,  at  the  south-western 
angle,  the  princess  Elizabeth  was  confined,  and  in 
the  present  century  it  was  the  prison  of  Sir  Francis 
Burdett,  committed  for  commenting  in  print  on  the 
proceedings  of  the  House  of  Commons.  The  Tower 
Subway  is  a  tunnel  constructed  iinder  the  Thames 
from  Tower  Hill  to  Tooley  Street  for  passenger  traf- 
fic, while  the  huge  Tower  Bridge,  opened  in  1894 
is  just  below  the  Tower,  the  ponderous  structure 
rising  to  let  the  shipping  pass  beneath,  and  at  other 
times  making  a  substantial  roadway  across  the  river. 
The  Duke  of  Wellington  was  constable  of  the  Tower 
at  one  time,  and  its  barracks  have  been  sometimes 
occupied  by  as  many  as  eight  thousand  troops.  This 
ancient  fortress  always  has  a  profound  interest  for 
visitors,  and  no  part  of  it  more  than  the  Water-Gate, 
leading  from  the  Thames,  the  noted  "  Traitor's  Gate," 
through  which  have  gone  so  many  victims  of  des- 
potism and  tyranny — heroes  who  have  passed 

"  On  througli  that  gate,  through  wliich  before 
Went  Sydney,  Russell,  Raleigh,  Cranmer,  More." 


254   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 


THE   LOLLARDS   AND    LAMBETH. 

The  Arclibisliop  of  Canterbury,  liead  of  the  Church 
of  England,  who  crowns  the  sovereigns,  lias  his  palace 
at  Lambeth,  on  the  south  side  of  the  Thames,  oppo- 
site Westminster,  and  its  most  noted  portion  is  the 
Lollards'  Tower.  The  Lollards,  named  from  their 
low  tone  of  singing  at  interments,  were  a  numerous 
sect  exerting  great  influence  in  the  fourteenth  cen- 
tury. The  Church  persecuted  them,  and  many  suf- 
fered death,  and  their  prison  Avas  the  Lollards'  Tower, 
built  in  1434,  adjoining  the  archiepiscopal  palace. 
This  prison  is  reached  by  a  narrow  stairway,  and  at 
the  entrance  is  a  small  doorway  barely  sufficient  for 
one  person  to  pass  at  a  time.  The  palace  itself 
was  built  in  the  days  of  the  Tudors,  and  the  gat(;- 
house  of  red  brick  in  1499.  The  chapel  is  Early 
English,  its  oldest  portion  having  been  built  in  the 
thirteenth  century.  All  the  Archbishops  of  Canter- 
bury since  that  time  have  been  consecrated  there. 
There  are  a  great  hall  and  library,  and  the  history  of 
this  famous  religious  palace  is  most  interesting.  At 
the  red  brick  gatehouse  the  dole  is  distributed  by 
the  archbishop,  as  from  time  immemorial,  to  indigent 
parishioners.  Thirty  poor  widows  on  three  days  of 
tlie  week  each  get  a  loaf,  meat,  and  two  and  a  half 
pence,  while  soup  is  also  given  them  and  to  other 
poor    persons.     The   Archbishop    of    Canterbury    is 


WHITEHALL.  255 

the  "  Primate  of  all  England,"  and  he  receives  a 
salary  of  S75,000  annually. 

Bow  Church,  or  St.  Mary-le-Bo\v,  on  Cheapside, 
is  one  of  the  best  known  churches  of  London.  It  is 
surmounted  by  one  of  the  most  admired  of  Wren's 
spires,  which  is  two  hundred  and  twenty-five  feet 
high.  There  is  a  dragon  upon  the  spire  nearly  nine 
feet  long.  It  is  the  sure  criterion  of  a  London 
Cockney  to  have  been  born  Avithin  sound  of  "  Bow 
Bells."  A  church  stood  here  in  very  early  times, 
said  to  have  been  built  upon  arches,  from  which  is 
derived  the  name  of  the  Ecclesiastical  Court  of 
Arches,  the  supreme  court  of  the  province  of 
Canterbury,  a  tribunal  first  held  in  Bow  Church. 
Another  of  Wren's  noted  churches  is  St.  Bride's,  on 
Fleet  Street  (which  gets  its  name  from  the  old  Fleet 
Bank),  remarkable  for  its  beautiful  steeple,  originally 
two  hundred  and  thirty-four  feet  high.  It  has  been 
much  damaged  by  lightning.  The  east  window  of 
St.  Bride's  is  a  copy  on  stained  glass  of  Rubens' 
painting  of  "  The  Descent  from  the  Cross."  This 
church  contains  several  famous  tombs. 

WHITEHALL. 

We  will  now  take  a  brief  view  of  Westminster, 
the  region  of  palaces,  and  first  of  all  pause  at  the 
most  ancient  and  famous  of  them,  Whitehall,  of 
which  only  the  admirable  Palladian  Banqueting 
House  remains.     This  was  originally  the  residence 


256    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

of  the  Archbishops  of  York,  and  here  lived  Cardinal 
Wolsey  in  great  splendor  until  his  downfall,  when 
Henry  VIII.  took  AVhitehall  for  his  palaee  and  made 
large  additions  to  the  buildings,  entering  it  as  a 
residence  with  his  queen,  Anne  Boleyn.  The 
sovereigns  of  England  lived  in  Whitehall  for  nearly 
two  centuries,  and  in  Charles  I.'s  reign  it  contained 
the  finest  picture-gallery  in  the  kingdom.  This  xm- 
happy  king  was  beheaded  in  front  of  the  lianquet- 
ing  House,  being  led  to  tlie  scaffold  out  of  one  of 
the  windows.  James  II.  left  Whitehall  when  he 
abandoned  the  kingdom,  and  accidental  fires  in  the 
closing  years  of  the  seventeenth  century  consumed 
the  greater  part  of  the  buildings.  The  Banqueting 
House,  which  is  one  hundred  and  eleven  feet  long 
and  a  fine  structure  of  Portland  stone,  is  all  that 
remains,  and  it  now  contains  the  United  K?ervice 
Museum,  which  is  open  to  the  public.  Rubens' 
paintings  commemorating  King  James  I.  arc  still 
on  the  ceiling. 

In  the  district  of  Whitehall  are  also  the  army  head- 
quarters and  office  of  the  commander-in-chief— now 
known  popularly  as  the  "  Horse  Guards,"  because  in 
front  of  it  two  mounted  horsemen  stand  on  duty  all 
day  in  horse-boxes  on  either  side  of  the  entrance. 
The  clock  surmounting  the  building  in  its  central 
tower  is  said  to  be  the  standard  timekeeper  of 
London  for  the  West  End.  A  carriage-way  leads 
through  the    centre   of  the   building  to  St.  James 


ST.  JAMES  PALACE.  257 

Park,  a  route  which  only  the  royal  family  are  per- 
mitted to  use.  Not  far  away  are  the  other  gov- 
ernment offices — the  Admiralty  building  and  also 
'*  Downing  Street,"  where  resides  the  premier  and 
Avhere  the  secretaries  of  state  have  their  offices  and 
the  Cabinet  meets.  Here  are  the  Treasury  Building 
and  the  Foreign  Office,  and  from  this  spot  England 
may  be  said  to  be  ruled.  In  this  neighborhood  also 
is  Scotland  Yard,  the  head-quarters  of  the  London 
detective  system.  It  obtained  its  name  from  being 
the  residence  of  the  Scottish  kings  when  they  visited 
London. 

ST.    JAMES    PALACE. 

When  the  palace  in  Whitehall  was  destroyed  the 
sovereigns  made  their  residence  chiefly  at  St.  James 
Palace,  which  stands  on  the  north  side  of  St.  James 
Park.  This  building  is  more  remarkable  for  its 
historical  associations  than  for  its  ai'chitecture.  It 
was  originally  a  leper's  hospital,  but  Henry  VIII., 
obtaining  possession  of  it,  pulled  down  the  old  build- 
ings and  laid  out  an  extensive  park,  using  it  as  a 
semi-rural  residence  called  the  Manor  House.  Its 
gatehouse  and  turrets  were  built  for  him  from  plans 
by  Holbein.  Queen  Mary  died  in  it,  and  in  its 
chapel  Charles  I.  attended  service  on  the  morning 
of  his  execution,  and  we  are  told  that  he  walked 
from  the  palace  through  the  park,  guarded  by  a 
regiment  of  troops,  to  Whitehall  to  be  beheaded. 
Here  lived  General  Monk  when  he  planned  the 
Vol.  I.— 17 


258    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCBIPTIVE. 

Restoration,  and  AVilliam  III.  first  received  the 
allegiance  of  the  English  nobles  here  in  1G88,  but 
this  palace  was  not  used  regularly  for  state  cere- 
monies until  Whitehall  was  burned.  From  this 
official  use  of  St.  James  Palace  comes  the  title  of 
"  The  Court  of  St.  James."  Queen  Anne,  the  four 
Georges,  and  AVilliam  IH.  resided  in  the  palace,  and 
in  its  Chapel  Queen  Victoria  was  married,  but  she 
holds  only  court  drawing-rooms  and  levees  there, 
using  Buckingham  Palace  for  her  residence.  Pass- 
ing through  the  gateway  into  the  quadrangle,  the 
A'isitor  enters  the  Color  Court,  so  called  from  the 
colors  of  the  household  regiment  on  duty  being 
placed  there.  The  state-apartments  are  on  the 
south  front.  The  great  sight  of  St.  James  is  a 
queen's  drawing-room  in  the  height  of  the  season, 
when  presentations  are  made  at  court.  On  such 
occasions  the  "  Yeomen  of  the  Guard,"  a  body 
instituted  by  Henry  VII.,  line  the  chamber,  and  the 
"  Gentlemen-at-Arms,"  instituted  by  Henry  VIII., 
are  also  on  duty,  Avearing  a  uniform  of  scarlet  and 
gold  and  carrying  small  battle-axes  covered  Avith 
crimson  velvet.  Each  body  has  a  captain,  Avho  is  a 
nobleman,  these  offices  being  highly  prized  and  usu- 
ally changed  Avith  the  ministry. 

BUCKINGHAM   PALACE. 

We  haA'e   boon   to   the  queen's  countrA'-home    at 
Windsor,  and  Avill  noAv  visit  her  tOAvn-house,  Buck- 


BUCKINGHAM  PALACE.  259 

ingham  Palace,  which  is  also  in  St.  James  Park. 
Here  stood  a  plain  brick  mansion,  built  in  1703 
by  the  Duke  of  Buckingham,  and  in  which  Avas 
gathered  the  famous  library  of  George  III.,  which 
is  now  in  the  British  museum.  The  house  was  de- 
scribed as  "dull,  dowdy,  and  decent,"  but  in  1825  it 
was  greatly  enlarged  and  improved,  and  Queen 
Victoria  took  possession  of  the  new  palace  in  1837, 
and  has  lived  there  ever  since.  Her  increasing 
family  necessitated  the  construction  of  a  large  ad- 
dition in  1846,  and  a  fcAv  years  afterwards  the  Marble 
Arch,  which  till  then  formed  the  entrance,  was 
moved  from  Buckingham  Palace  to  Hyde  Park,  and 
a  fine  ball-room  constructed  in  its  place.  This  palace 
contains  a  gorgeously-decorated  throne-room  and  a 
fine  picture-gallery,  the  grand  staircase  leading  up 
to  the  state-apartments  being  of  marble.  The 
gardens  of  Buckingham  Palace  cover  about  forty 
acres :  in  them  are  a  pavilion  and  an  attractive 
chapel,  the  latter  having  been  formerly  a  conserva- 
tory. At  the  rear  of  the  palace,  concealed  from 
view  by  a  high  mound,  are  the  queen's  stables  or 
''  mews,"  so  called  because  the  royal  stables  were 
formerly  built  in  a  place  used  for  keeping  falcons. 
In  these  stables  is  the  gaudily-decorated  state  coach, 
built  in  1762  at  a  cost  of  $38,000.  Marlborough 
House,  the  town-residence  of  the  Prince  of  Wales, 
adjoins  St.  James  Palace,  but  is  not  very  attractive. 
It  was   originally  built  for  the  first  Duke  of  Marlr 


260    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

borougli,  who  died  in  it,  and  is  said  to  have  been 
designed  by  Wren,  having  afterwards  been  enhirgod 
when  it  became  a  royal  residence. 

KENSINGTON   PALACE. 

Standing  on  the  west  side  of  the  Kensington  Gar- 
dens is  the  plain,  irregular  red  brick  structure  known 
as  Kensington  Palace,  which  was  originallv  Lord 
Chancellor  Finch's  house.  William  III.  bought  it 
from  his  grandson,  and  greatly  enlarged  it.  Here 
died  William  and  Mary,  Queen  Anne,  and  George 
II.,  and  here  Victoria  was  born.  Perhaps  the  most 
interesting  event  that  Kensington  Palace  has  wit- 
nessed was  the  notitication  to  the  princess  Vic- 
toria of  the  death  of  William  IV.  He  died  on  the 
night  of  June  19,  1837,  and  at  two  o'clock  the  next 
morning  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  and  the  lord 
chamberlain  set  out  to  announce  the  event  to  the 
young  sovereign.  They  reached  Kensington  Palace 
about  five  o'clock,  early,  but  in  broad  daylight,  for 
the  sun  had  long  risen,  and  they  knocked  and  rang 
and  made  a  commotion  for  a  considerable  time  before 
they  could  arouse  the  porter  at  the  gate.  Being  ad- 
mitted, they  were  kept  waiting  in  the  courtyard,  and 
then,  seeming  to  be  forgotten  by  everybody,  they 
ttirned  into  a  lower  room  and  again  rang  and 
pounded.  Servants  appearing,  they  desired  that  an 
attendant  might  be  sent  to  inform  the  princess  that 
they    requested   a   speedy  audience  on  business  of 


KENSINGTON  PALACE.  261 

suprene  importance.  Then  tliere  was  more  delay, 
and  another  ringing  to  learn  the  cause,  which  ulti- 
mately brought  the  attendant,  who  stated  that  the 
princess  was  in  such  a  sweet  sleep  she  could  not 
venture  to  disturb  her.  Thoroughly  vexed,  they 
said,  "  We  are  come  to  the  queen  on  business  of 
state,  and  even  her  sleep  must  give  way  to  that." 
This  produced  a  speedy  result,  for,  to  prove  that  it 
was  not  she  Avho  kept  them  waiting,  Victoria  in  a 
few  minutes  came  into  the  room  in  a  loose  white 
night-gown  and  shawl,  Avith  her  hair  falling  upon 
her  shoulders  and  her  feet  in  slippers,  shedding  tears, 
but  perfectly  collected.  She  was  told  of  the  king's 
death,  and  immediately  summoned  her  council  to 
assemble  at  Kensington  Palace,  but  most  of  the  sum- 
monses were  not  received  by  those  to  whom  they 
were  sent  till  after  the  early  hour  fixed  for  the  meet- 
ing. She  sat  at  the  head  of  the  table,  when  the 
council  met,  and,  as  a  lady  who  was  then  at  court 
writes,  "  she  received  first  the  homage  of  the  Duke 
of  Cumberland,  who  was  not  King  of  Hanover  when 
he  knelt  to  her ;  the  Duke  of  Sussex  rose  to  perform 
the  same  ceremony,  but  the  queen  with  admirable 
grace  stood  up,  and,  preventing  him  from  kneeling, 
kissed  him  on  the  forehead.  The  crowd  was  so 
great,  the  arrangements  were  so  ill  made,  that  my 
brothers  told  me  the  scene  of  swearing  allegiance 
to  their  young  sovereign  was  more  like  that  of  the 
bidding  at  an  auction  than  anything  else." 


262  ENGLAND,  PICTUKESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVK 

YlIE   HOUSES   OF   PARLIAMENT. 

The  finest  of  all  the  public  buildings  of  the 
British  governinent  in  London,  the  Houses  of  Piirlia- 
ment,  are  on  the  bank  of  the  Thames  in  West- 
minster, and  are  of  modern  construction.  They  rise 
on  the  verge  of  Parliament  Square,  Avhich  is  embel- 
lished by  statues  of  noted  prime  ministers — Peel, 
Canning,  Palmerston,  Derby,  and  Heaconsfield.  The 
old  Parliament  Houses  Mere  burnt  in  1834,  and  Sir 
Charles  Barry  designed  the  present  magnificent 
palace,  Avhich  covers  nearly  eight  acres,  contains 
eleven  hundred  rooms,  and  cost  $20,000,000.  The 
architecture  is  in  the  richest  Tudor  Gothic  style, 
and  the  grand  fa(;ade  stretches  nine  hundred  and 
forty  feet  along  a  terrace  fronting  on  the  Thames. 
This  palace  of  St.  Stephen  is  richly  decorated  with 
statues  of  kings  and  queens  and  heraldic  devices, 
and  has  two  pinnacled  towers  at  each  end  and  two 
in  the  centre.  At  the  northern  end  one  of  the  finest 
bridjres  across  the  Thames — the  AVestminster  Bridfce 
— is  built,  and  here  rises  the  Clock  Tower,  foi'ty  feet 
square  and  three  hundred  and  twenty  feet  high, 
copied  in  great  measure  from  a  similar  tower  at 
Bruges.  A  splendid  clock  and  bolls  are  in  the 
tower,  the  largest  bell,  which  strikes  the  hours, 
Aveighing  eight  tons  and  the  clock-dials  being  thirty 
feet  in  diameter.  The  grandest  feature  of  this 
palace,  however,  is  the  Victoria  Tower,  at  the  south- 


THE  HOUSES  OF  PARLIAMENT.  263 

western  angle,  eighty  feet  square  and  three  hundred 
and  forty  feet  high.  Here  is  the  sovereign's  en- 
trance to  the  House  of  Peers,  through  a  magnificent 
archway  sixty-five  feet  high  and  having  inside  the 
porch  statues  of  the  patron  saints  of  the  three  king- 
doms— St.  George,  St.  Andrew,  and  St.  Patrick — 
and  one  of  Queen  Victoria,  between  the  figures  of 
Justice  and  Mercy.  From  the  centre  of  the  palace 
rises  a  spire  over  the  dome  of  the  Central  Hall  three 
hundred  feet  high.  In  constructing  the  palace  the 
old  Westminster  Hall  with  its  magnificent  oak  ceil- 
ing, a  masterpiece  of  timber  architecture,  has  been 
retained,  so  that  it  forms  a  grand  public  entrance, 
leading  through  St.  Stephen's  Porch  to  St.  Stephen's 
Hall,  which  is  ninety-five  feet  long  and  fifty-six  feet 
high,  whei'e  statues  have  been  placed  of  many  of 
the  great  statesmen  and  judges  of  England.  From 
this  a  passage  leads  to  the  Central  Hall,  an  octagonal 
chamber  seventy  feet  across  and  seventy-five  feet 
high,  having  a  beautiful  groined  roof.  Corridors 
adorned  with  frescoes  stretch  north  and  south  from 
this  Central  Hall  to  the  House  of  Commons  and  the 
House  of  Peers.  The  former  is  sixty-two  feet  long, 
and  constructed  with  especial  attention  to  acoustics, 
but  it  only  has  benches  for  a  little  over  two-thirds  of 
the  membership  of  the  House,  and  the  other  mem- 
bers must  manage  as  best  they  can.  The  Speaker's 
chair  is  at  the  north  end,  and  the  ministers  sit  on  his 
right  hand  and  the  opposition  on  the  left.    Outside  the 


264    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

House  are  the  lobbies,  to  which  the  members  with- 
draw on  a  division.  The  interior  of  the  House  is 
plain,  excepting  the  ceiling,  which  is  richly  dec- 
orated. The  House  of  Peers  is  most  gorgeously 
ornamented,  having  on  either  side  six  lofty  stained- 
glass  windows  with  portraits  of  sovereigns,  these 
windows  being  lighted  at  night  from  the  outside. 
The  room  is  ninety-one  feet  long,  and  at  each  end 
has  three  frescoed  archways  representing  religious 
and  allegorical  subjects.  Niches  in  the  walls  contain 
statues  of  the  barons  who  compelled  King  John  to 
sign  Magna  Charta.  There  are  heraldic  devices  on 
the  ceilings  and  walls,  and  the  throne  stands  at 
the  southern  end.  The  "  Woolsack,"  where  sits 
the  lord  chancellor,  who  presides  over  the  House, 
is  a  scat  near  the  middle  of  the  room,  covered 
with  crimson  cloth.  When  the  sovereign  comes  to 
the  palace  and  enters  the  gateway  at  the  Victoria 
Tower,  she  is  ushered  into  the  Norman  Porch, 
containing  statues  and  frescoes  representing  the 
Norman  sovereigns,  and  then  enters  the  Kobing 
Room,  splendidly  decorated  and  having  frescoes 
representing  the  legends  of  King  Arthur.  When 
the  ceremony  of  robing  is  completed,  she  proceeds  to 
the  House  of  Peers  through  the  longest  room  in  the 
palace,  the  Victoria  Gallery,  one  hundred  and  ten 
feet  long  and  forty-five  feet  wide  and  high.  His- 
torical frescoes  adorn  the  walls  and  the  ceiling  is 
richly   gilded.     This  gallery  leads  to  the   Prince's 


Zbc  Douse  ot  X^rOd. 


HYDE  PARK.  265 

Chamber,  also  splendidly  decorated,  and  having  two 
doorways  opening  into  the  House  of  Peers,  one  on 
each  side  of  the  throne.  In  this  palace  for  six 
months  or  more  in  every  year  the  British  Parliament 
meets. 

HYDE   PARK. 

When  the  Marble  Arch  was  taken  from  Bucking- 
liam  Palace,  it  was  removed  to  Hyde  Park,  of  which 
it  forms  one  of  the  chief  entrances  at  Cumberland 
Gate.  This  magnificent  gate,  which  cost  $400,000, 
leads  into  probably  the  best  known  of  the  London 
parks,  the  ancient  manor  of  Hyde.  It  was  an  early 
resort  of  fashion,  for  the  Puritans  in  their  time  com- 
plained of  it  as  the  resort  of  "  most  shameful 
powdered-hair  men  and  painted  women."  It  covers 
about  three  hundred  and  ninety  acres,  and  has  a 
pretty  sheet  of  water,  artificially  constructed,  called 
the  Serpentine.  The  fashionable  drive  is  on  the 
southern  side,  and  alongside  is  the  famous  road  for 
equestrians  known  as  Rotten  Row,  which  stretches 
nearly  a  mile  and  a  half.  On  a  fine  afternoon  in 
the  season  the  display  on  these  roads  is  grand.  In 
Hyde  Park  are  held  the  great  military  reviews  and 
the  mass-meetings  of  the  populace,  who  occasionally 
display  their  discontent  by  battering  down  the  rail- 
ings, a  metliod  of  practical  demonstration  which 
satisfies  them  and  does  not  do  much  harm  to  the 
government.  At  Hyde  Park  Corner  is  a  fine  en- 
trance-gate,  Avith  the    Green  Park   Gate   opposite, 


26G    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE 

suniiounted  by  tlic  Wellington  bronze  equestrian 
statue.  The  grandest  decoration  of  Hyde  Park  is  tiic 
Albert  Memorial,  situated  near  the  Prince's  Gate  on 
the  southern  side.  The  upper  portion  is  a  cross, 
supported  by  three  successive  tiers  of  emblematic 
gilded  figures,  and  at  the  four  angles  are  noble  groups 
representing  the  four  quarters  of  the  globe.  This 
was  the  masterpiece  of  Sir  Gilbert  Scott,  and  is  con- 
sidered the  most  splendid  monument  of  modern 
times.  It  marks  the  site  of  the  Crystal  Palace 
Exhibition  of  1851,  in  which  Prince  Albert  took 
great  interest :  there  are  upon  it  one  hundred  and 
sixty-nine  life-sized  portrait  figures  of  illustrious 
artists,  composers,  and  poets,  while  under  the  grand 
canopy  in  the  centre  is  the  seated  figure  of  the 
Prince.  Opposite  is  the  Koyal  Albert  Hall,  and 
behind  this  the  magnificent  buildings  of  the  South 
Kensington  Museum,  which  grew  out  of  the  Ex- 
hibition of  1851,  and  the  site  for  which  was  bought 
with  the  surplus  fund  remaining  after  paying  the 
expenses  of  that  great  display,  the  first  World's 
Fair.  Tliis  is  a  national  museum  for  art  and  manu- 
factures allied  to  art.  Its  collections  are  becoming 
enormous  and  of  priceless  value,  and  include  many 
fine  paintings,  among  them  Raphael's  cartoons,  with 
galleries  of  sculpture  and  antiquities  and  museums 
of  patent  models.  There  are  art-schools  and 
libraries,  and  the  buildings,  which  were  construct- 
ing for  several  years,  are  of  rare  architectural  merit. 


A  VIEW  IN  THE  POULTRY.  267 

The  Royal  Albert  Hall  is  a  vast  ampliithcatre  of 
great  magnificence  devoted  to  exhibitions  of  in- 
dustry, art,  and  music.  It  is  of  oval  form,  and  its 
external  frieze  and  cornice  are  modelled  after  the 
Elgin  Marbles.  The  South  Kensington  Museum 
contains  one  of  the  most  extensive  and  finest  art 
collections  in  the  world.  It  has  an  art  training- 
school  and  school  of  science,  and  is  the  head  of 
technical  education  for  the  British  Empire.  It  also 
has  the  natural  history  collections  of  the  British 
Museum,  and  adjoining  are  the  gardens  of  the 
Horticultural  Society. 

A   VIEW    IN   THE    POULTRY. 

Going  down  into  the  heart  of  the  old  city  of 
London,  and  standing  in  the  street  called  the 
Poultry,  the  Bank  of  England  and  the  Royal  Ex- 
change are  seen  over  on  the  other  side,  with 
Threadneedle  Street  between  them,  and  Lombard 
Street  on  the  right  hand,  the  region  that  controls  the 
monetary  affairs  of  the  world.  Turning  round,  the 
Mansion  House  is  behind  the  observer,  this  being 
the  lord  mayor's  official  residence,  where  a  police 
court  is  open  daily  at  noon,  and  the  head-quarters  of 
the  city  government.  The  Royal  Exchange  has  been 
thrice  built  and  twice  burned — first  in  the  great  fire 
of  1666,  and  afterwards  in  1838.  The  present 
Exchange,  costing  $900,000,  was  opened  in  1844, 
and  is  three  hundred  and  eight  feet  long,  with  a  fine 


268   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

portico  on  the  western  front  ninety-six  feet  wide, 
and  supported  by  twelve  columns,  each  forty-one 
feet  hi<^h.  Within  is  an  open  area  surrounded  by 
an  arcade,  while  at  the  rear  is  Lloyds,  the  under- 
writers' offices,  where  the  business  of  insuring  ships 
is  transacted  in  a  hall  ninety-eight  feet  long  and 
forty  feet  wide.  Tuesday  and  Friday  afternoons 
from  3.30  to  4.30  are  the  times  when  the  chief 
business  is  transacted.  Wellington's  statue  stands 
in  front  of  the  Exchange,  and  in  the  middle  of  the 
central  area  is  a  statue  of  Queen  Victoria.  The 
Bank  of  England,  otherwise  kno>vn  as  the  "  Old 
Lady  of  Threadneedle  Street,"  covers  a  quadrangular 
space  of  about  four  acres,  with  a  narrow  street  on 
each  side.  It  is  but  one  story  high,  and  has  no 
windows  on  the  outside,  the  architecture  being  un- 
attractive. The  interior  is  well  adapted  for  the 
bank  offices,  which  are  constructed  around  nine 
courts.  The  bank  has  been  built  in  bits,  and  gradu- 
ally assumed  its  present  size  and  appearance.  It 
was  founded  in  1691  by  William  Paterson,  but  it 
did  not  remove  to  its  present  site  until  1734.  Its 
affairs  are  controlled  by  a  governor,  deputy  gov- 
ernor, and  twenty- four  directors,  and  the  bank  shares 
of  S500  par,  paying  about  ten  per  cent,  dividends 
per  annum,  sell  at  about  SI 775.  It  regulates  the 
discount  rate,  gauging  it  so  as  to  maintain  its  gold 
reserves,  and  it  also  keeps  the  coinage  in  good  order 
by   weighing   every  coin   that    passes    through    the 


A  VIEW  IN  THE  POULTRY.  269 

bank,  and  casting  out  the  liglit  ones  by  an  ingenious 
machine  that  Avill  test  thirty-live  thousand  in  a  day. 
It  also  prints  its  own  notes  upon  paper  containing  its 
own  water-mark,  whicli  is  the  chief  reliance  against 
forgery.  The  bank  transacts  the  government  busi- 
ness in  connection  with  the  British  public  debt, 
requiring  over  two  hundred  and  fifty  thousand 
separate  accounts  to  be  kept.  The  British  public 
debt  at  the  last  annual  report  was  $3,191,330,000. 
The  government  does  not  promise  to  pay  the  princi- 
pal at  any  stated  period  and  issues  no  bonds,  but  it 
does  promise  to  pay  a  fixed  rate  of  interest.  The 
debt  is  in  the  form  of  consols  and  terminable  annui- 
ties, and  the  reduction  of  the  debt  comes  from  the 
running  out  of  these  annuities.  In  this  way  the 
debt  has  been  gradually  reduced  from  the  enormous 
figures  it  reached  in  the  wars  with  Napoleon,  for 
which  much  of  it  was  created.  At  the  accession  of 
Queen  Victoria  the  debt  amounted  to  $3,807,000,000. 
The  Bank  of  England  transacts  all  the  financial  busi- 
ness of  the  Ik'itish  Government  and  holds  all  the 
Exchequer,  or  treasury,  funds  on  deposit.  This  is  a 
very  large  part  of  its  business.  It  is  the  greatest 
bank  in  the  Avorld ;  its  capital  is  $72,705,000,  and 
the  "  Rest,"  corresponding  in  a  certain  way  to 
surplus,  is  $17,498,825.  The  aggregate  bank  de- 
posits, government  and  other,  are  $203,104,280,  of 
which  about  $80,000,000  are  public  funds.  It  is 
the    great    British    storehouse   for   gold,    and   holds 


270  ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

$170,000,000  in  ingots,  bars,  bullion,  and  gold 
coins  of  all  the  nations  of  the  world.  It  thus  regu- 
lates the  whole  monetary  system  of  the  British 
islands,  as  it  keeps  on  deposit  the  resources  of  the 
joint-stock  banks  and  private  bankers  of  London 
and  the  kingdom,  besides  many  deposits  for  banks 
and  bankers  of  P^urope  and  America.  It  controls 
the  basis  of  the  entire  British  banking  system,  and 
its  changing  discount  rate  becomes  the  legal  rate  for 
all  the  others.  Most  of  its  gold  is  held  in  what  is 
known  as  the  "  issue  department,"  being,  with  some 
government  loans,  the  security  for  the  bank-note 
issues.  The  total  bank-note  issue  is  a  changing  one, 
according  to  the  necessities  of  trade,  and  while  tlie 
aggregate  issue  is  8243,500,000,  about  $121,500,000 
is  outstanding,  and  the  remainder  held  in  bank  sub- 
ject to  public  demand.  It  generally  holds  over 
40  per  cent.,  and  often  over  50  per  cent.,  resources 
to  cover  its  liabilities.*  It  keeps  an  accurate  history 
of  every  bank-note  that  is  issued,  redeeming  each 
note  that  comes  back  into  the  bank  in  the  course  of 
business,  and  keeping  all  the  redeemed  and  can- 
celled notes.  The  earliest  notes  were  written  with 
a  pen,  and  from  this  they  have  been  improved  until 
they  have  become  the  almost  square  white  pieces  of 
paper  of  to-day,  printed  in  bold  German  text,  that 
are  so  well  known,  yet  are  unlike  any  other  bank- 

'  All  these  figures  are  based  on  tlie  official   Bank  of  England 
return,  February  15,  181)9. 


A  VIEW  IN  THE  POULTRY.  271 

notes  in  existence.  Around  the  large  elliptical  table 
in  the  bank  parlor  the  directors  meet  every  Thursday 
to  regulate  its  affairs,  and^ — not  forgetting  they  are 
true  Englishmen — eat  a  savory  dinner,  the  windows 
of  the  parlor  looking  out  upon  a  little  gem  of  a 
garden  in  the  very  heart  of  London.  The  Mansion 
House,  built  in  17-iO,  is  fronted  by  a  Corinthian 
portico,  with  six  fluted  columns  and  a  pediment  of 
allegorical  sculpture.  Within  is  the  Egyptian  Hall, 
where  the  lord  mayor  fulfils  what  is  generally  re- 
garded as  his  chief  duty,  the  giving  of  grand 
banquets.  He  can  invite  four  hundred  persons  to 
the  tables  in  this  spacious  hall,  which  is  ornamented 
by  several  statues  by  British  sculptors,  over  840,000 
having  been  expended  for  its  ornamentation.  The 
lord  mayor  also  has  a  ball-room  and  other  apart- 
ments, including  his  Venetian  parlor  and  the  justice 
room,  where  he  sits  as  a  magistrate.  From  the  open 
space  in  front  of  the  Mansion  House  diverge  streets 
running  to  all  parts  of  London  and  to  the  great 
bridges  over  the  Thames. 

While  in  old  London  the  feasting  that  has  had  so 
much  to  do  with  the  municipal  corporation  cannot  be 
forgotten,  and  on  Bishopsgate  Street  we  find  the 
scene  of  many  of  the  famous  public  dinners,  sav- 
ory wuth  turtle-soup  and  white-bait — the  Londoii 
Tavern. 


272   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

THE   INNS   OF   COURT. 

Tho  four  Inns  of  Court  in  London  have  been 
described  as  the  palladiums  of  English  liberty — the 
Inner  Temple,  Middle  Temple,  Lincoln's  Inn,  and 
Gray's  Inn.  There  are  over  three  thousand  bar- 
risters members  of  these  Inns,  and  the  best  known 
is  probably  Lincoln's  Inn,  which  is  named  after  De 
Lacy,  Earl  of  Lincoln,  who  died  in  1312,  and  had 
liis  house  on  its  site,  his  device,  the  lion  rampant, 
being  adopted  by  the  Inn.  The  ancient  gatehouse, 
which  opens  from  Chancery  Lane,  is  nearly  four 
hundred  years  old.  The  Inn  has  an  old  hall  dating 
from  1506,  and  also  a  fine  modern  hall,  the  New- 
castle House,  one  hundred  and  twenty  feet  long, 
built  in  Tudor  style,  with  stained-glass  windows  and 
having  life-size  figures  of  several  eminent  members 
in  canopied  niches.  Here  is  Hogarth's  celebrated 
picture  of  ''  Paul  before  Felix."  The  Inn  has  a 
valuable  library,  and  among  its  members  has  counted 
More,  Hale,  Selden,  Mansfield,  and  Hardwicke. 

Across  Fleet  Street,  and  between  it  and  the 
Thames,  is  the  Temple,  a  lane  dividing  it  into  the 
Inner  and  the  Middle  Temple,  while  obstructing 
Fleet  Street  there  was  the  old  Temple  Bar,  one  of 
the  ancient  city  gates,  which  was  removed  in  1878. 
The  name  is  derived  from  the  Knights  Templar, 
who  lived  here  soveral  centuries  ago ;  and  they 
afterwards   gave    the    site    to    certain   law-students 


THE  INNS  OF  COURT.  273 

who  wished  to  live  in  the  suburbs  away  from  the 
noise  of  the  city.  Here  in  seclusion,  for  the  gates 
were  locked  at  night,  the  gentlemen  of  these  socie- 
ties in  a  bygone  age  were  famous  for  the  masques  and 
revels  given  in  their  halls.  Kings  and  judges  at- 
tended them,  and  many  were  the  plays  and  songs 
and  dances  that  then  enlivened  the  dull  routine  of 
the  law.  The  Inner  Temple  has  for  its  device  a 
winged  horse,  and  the  Middle  Temple  a  lamb.  Some 
satirist  has  written  of  these — 

"  Their  clients  may  infer  from  thence 
How  just  is  their  profession : 
The  lamb  sets  forth  their  innocence, 
The  horse  their  expedition." 

Here  is  the  old  Templar  Church  of  St.  Mary,  built 
in  1185  and  enlarged  in  1240.  Formerly,  the  law- 
yers waited  for  their  clients  in  this  ancient  church. 
During  recent  years  England  has  erected  magnificent 
buildings  for  her  law  courts.  The  new  Palace  of 
Justice  fronts  about  five  hundred  feet  on  Fleet  Street, 
at  the  corner  of  Chancery  Lane,  near  the  site  of 
Temple  Bar,  which  Avas  taken  away  because  it  im- 
peded the  erection  of  the  new  courts,  and  they 
cover  six  acres,  with  ample  gardens  back  from  the 
street,  the  wings  extending  about  five  hundred  feet 
northward  around  them.  A  fine  clock-tower  sur- 
mounts the  new  courts.  In  this  neighborhood  are 
many  ancient  structures,  above  which  the  Palace  of 
Vol.  I.— 18 


274    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Justice    grandly    towers,  and    some    of   them    have 
quaint  balconies  overlooking  the  street. 

THE    BRITISH    MUSEUM. 

Fronting  upon  Great  Russell  Street,  to  which 
various  smaller  streets  lead  northward  from  Oxford 
Street,  is  that  vast  treasure-house  of  knowledge 
Avhose  renown  is  world-wide,  the  British  ]\Iuseuin. 
The  buildings  and  their  court-yards  cover  seven 
acres,  and  have  cost  nearly  $5,000,000  to  construct. 
The  front  is  three  hundred  and  seventy  feet  long, 
the  entrance  being  under  a  grand  Ionic  portico  sup- 
])orted  by  rows  of  colunms  forty-.five  feet  high. 
This  vast  museum  originated  from  a  provision  in 
the  will  of  Sir  Hans  Sloane  in  the  last  century,  who 
had  made  a  valuable  collection  and  directed  that  it 
be  sold  to  the  government  for  8100,000.  Parlia- 
ment, accepting  the  offer,  in  1753  created  the  mu- 
seum to  take  charge  of  this  and  some  other  collec- 
tions. The  present  site,  then  Montagu  House,  was 
selectetl  for  the  museum,  but  it  was  not  imtil  1828 
that  the  present  buildings  were  begun,  and  they 
were  many  years  in  construction.  The  reading- 
room,  the  latest  addition,  is  the  iinest  structure  of 
its  kind  in  the  world,  being  a  circular  hall  one 
hundrod  and  forty  feet  in  diameter  and  covered  with 
a  domo  one  hundred  and  six  feet  high.  It  cost 
$750,000,  and  its  library  is  believed  to  bo  the  largest 
in  the  world,  containing  over  one  million  volumes, 


SOME  LONDON  SCENES.  275 

and  increasing  at  the  rate  of  twenty  thousand  vol- 
umes annually.  Its  collection  of  prints  is  also  of 
rare  value  and  vast  extent,  and  by  far  the  finest 
in  the  world. 

SOME    LONDON    SCENES. 

Let  us  now  take  a  brief  glance  at  some  well- 
known  London  sights.  The  two  great  heroes  who 
are  commemorated  in  modern  London  are  Welling- 
ton and  Nelson.  Trafalgar  kSquare  commemorates 
Nelson's  death  and  greatest  victory,  the  Nelson  Col- 
umn standing  in  the  centre,  with  Landsecr's  colossal 
lions  reposing  at  its  base.  Trafalgar  Square  was 
called  by  kSir  Robert  Peel  the  finest  site  in  Europe, 
and  Charing  Cross  is  to  the  southwest,  the  official 
centre  of  the  city,  adjoined  by  a  capacious  railway 
station,  from  which  the  trains  cross  the  Thames 
to  the  Surrey  side.  Passing  eastward  along  the 
Strand,  beyond  Charing  Cross  and  Somerset  House, 
we  come  to  Wellington  Street,  which  leads  to  Water- 
loo Bridge  across  the  Thames.  This  admirable 
structure,  the  masterpiece  of  John  Kennie,  cost 
S3,000,000,  and  was  opened  on  the  anniversary  of 
the  battle  of  Waterloo  in  1817.  It  is  of  granite, 
and  with  the  approaches  nearly  a  half  mile  long,  cross- 
ing the  river  upon  nine  arches,  each  of  one  hundred 
and  twenty  feet  span.  Passing  westward  from  Tra- 
falgar Square,  we  enter  Pall  Mall,  perhaps  the  most 
striking  of  the  London  streets  in  point  of  architect- 


27G    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

ure.  Here  are  club-houses  and  theatres,  statues  and 
cohiinns,  and  the  street  swarms  with  liistorical  asso- 
ciations. On  the  south  side  are  the  Kel'orni  and 
Carlton  Clubs,  the  headquarters  respectively  of  the 
Liberal  and  Conservative  parties,  and  a  little  beyond, 
on  the  same  side,  the  row  of  buildings  of  all  sizes 
and  shapes  making  up  the  War  Office.  Among 
them  is  a  quaint  old  Queen-Anne  mansion  of  brick, 
with  a  curious  pediment  and  having  many  windows 
— 8chon)berg  House,  shorn  of  one  wing,  but  still 
retained  among  so  much  that  is  grand  around  it. 
Also  in  Pall  Mall  is  Foley's  celebrated  statue  of 
Sidney  Herbert,  one  of  the  most  impressive  in  Lon- 
don— the  head  drooped  sadly  and  reflectively,  indi- 
cating that  it  is  the  image  of  a  conscientious  war- 
minister,  who,  overweighted  with  the  responsibility 
of  his  office,  was  cut  off  prematurely.  Although 
not  one  of  the  greatest  men  in  England,  Herbert's 
fame  will  be  better  preserved  by  his  finer  statue 
than  that  of  many  men  who  have  filled  a  much 
larger  space  in  her  history.  ]\L'irlborough  House 
has  an  entrance  on  Pall  Mall,  and  adjoining  its  gate 
is  the  curious  and  elaborately  decorated  building  of 
the  Beaconsfield  Club.  Over  the  doorway  tiie  semi- 
circular cornice  does  duty  for  a  balcony  for  the 
drawing-room  windows  above.  The  doorway  itself 
is  an  imposing  archway  strangely  cut  into  segments, 
one  forming  a  window  and  the  other  the  door. 

London  contains  in  the  West  End  many  squares 


SOME  LONDON  SCENES.  277 

surrounded  by  handsome  residences,  among  them 
probably  the  best  known  being  Belgrave,  Eaton, 
Russell,  Bedford,  Grosvenor,  Hanover,  and  Caven- 
dish Squares.  Eaton  Square  is  said  to  be  the  larg- 
est of  these,  Grosvenor  Square  the  most  fashionable, 
and  Cavendish  Square  the  most  salubrious  and  best 
cultivated.  The  line  of  streets  leading  by  Oxford 
Street  to  the  Marble  x\rch  entrance  to  Hyde  Park  is 
London's  most  fashionable  route  of  city  travel,  and 
on  Tottenham  Court  Road,  which  starts  northward 
from  Oxford  Street,  is  the  Bell  Inn  at  Edmonton. 
It  is  not  a  very  attractive  house,  but  it  is  interesting 
because  it  was  here  that  Johnny  Gilpin  and  his 
worthy  spouse  should  have  dined  when  that  day  of 
sad  disasters  came  which  Cowper  has  chronicled  in 
John  Gilpin's  famous  ride.  The  old  house  has  been 
much  changed  since  then,  but  it  has  capacious  gar- 
dens, and  is  the  resort  to  this  day  of  London  holiday- 
makers.  It  is  connnonly  known  as  "  Gilpin's  Bell," 
and  a  painting  of  the  ride  is  proudly  placed  outside 
the  inn.  Tottenham  Court  Road  goes  through  Cam- 
den Town,  and  here  at  Euston  Square  is  the  London 
terminus  of  the  greatest  railway  in  England — the 
London  and  North-western  Company.  Large  hotels 
adjoin  the  station,  and  the  Underground  Railway 
comes  into  it  alongside  the  platform,  thus  giving 
easy  access  to  all  parts  of  the  metropolis.  This 
railway  is  one  of  the  wonders  of  the  metropolis,  and 
it  has  cost  about  $3,250,000  per  mile  to  construct. 


278   ENGLAND,  riCTURKSQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

The  original  idea  seeins  to  liavc  been  to  connect  the 
various  stations  of  the  railways  leading  out  of  town, 
and  to  do  this,  and  at  the  same  time  furnish  means 
of  rapid  tran.sit  from  the  heart  of  the  city  to  the 
suburbs,  the  railway  has  been  constructed  in  the 
form  of  an  irregular  ellipse,  running  all  around  the 
city,  yet  kept  far  within  the  built-up  portions.  It  is 
a  double  track,  Avith  trains  running  all  around  both 
ivays,  so  that  the  passenger  goes  wherever  he 
wishes  simply  by  following  the  circuit,  while  branch 
lines  extend  to  the  AVest  End  beyond  I'jiddington 
and  Kensington.  It  is  constructed  not  in  a  continu- 
ous tunnel,  for  there  are  frequent  open  spaces,  but 
on  a  general  level  lower  than  that  of  the  greater 
])art  of  London,  and  the  routes  are  pursued  without 
regard  to  the  street-lines  on  the  surface  above,  often 
passing  diagonally  under  blocks  of  houses.  The 
construction  has  taxed  engineering  skill  to  the 
utmost,  for  huge  buildings  have  had  to  be  shored  up, 
sewers  diverted,  and,  at  the  stations,  vast  spaces 
burrowed  underground  to  get  enough  room.  In  this 
way  London  solved  its  rapid-transit  problem,  though 
it  could  be  done  only  at  enormous  cost.  The  me- 
tropolis, it  will  be  seen,  has  no  end  of  attractions,  and 
for  the  traveller's  acconnnodation  the  ancient  inns 
are  ra}>idly  giving  place  to  modern  hotels,  some  of 
the  finest  new  ones  being  built  Uj)on  the  Thames 
Embankment.  The  great  river  sweeps  througli  the 
heart  of  London  in  a  magnificent  semicircle,  and  the 


SOME  LONDON  SCENES.  279 

banks  on  citlicr  side  have  had  all  the  old  houses 
removed,  and  streets  one  hundred  feet  wide  are  laid 
out  with  massive  walls,  enclosing  the  river,  sur- 
mounted by  balustrades.  The  northern  shore  has 
the  Victoria  Embankment  stretching  between  West- 
minster and  Blackfriars  bridges,  constructed  at  a  cost 
of  $10,000,000  and  opened  in  1870,  the  highway 
continuing  to  the  heart  of  London  as  Queen  A'ictoria 
Street,  thus  having  the  Houses  of  Parliament;  at  one 
end  and  St.  Paul's  Cathedral  at  the  other,  with 
Waterloo  Bridge  midway.  The  southern  shore  has 
the  Albert  Embankment,  opened  about  the  same 
time,  which  cost  nearly  $0,000,000,  and  extends 
between  the  Westminster  and  Vauxhall  bridges. 
Cleopatra's  Xeedlc,  the  noted  obelisk  brought  from 
Egypt,  and  several  statues,  with  pleasantly  laid-out 
gardens,  adorn  the  Victoria  Embankment;  and  lierc 
is  the  New  Scotland  Yard,  the  police  head-(juarters. 
A  dozen  bridges  cross  the  Thames  in  London,  the 
most  fEimous  being  London  Bridge,  which  is  at  the 
head  of  navigation  for  masted  vessels.  This  bridge 
is  over  nine  hundred  feet  long,  and  countless  multi- 
tudes cross  it,  the  traflic  in  vehicles  exceeding  twenty- 
five  thousand  daily.  It  was  here  that  Macaulay 
])ictured  in  imagination  wliat  might  be  the  coming 
desolation  of  the  great  city,  by  describing  how  a 
future  traveller  from  the  antipodes  might  come  and 
"  sit  upon  a  broken  arch  of  London  Bridge  to  sketch 
the  ruins  of  St.  Paul's." 


280  j:ngland,  picturesque  and  descriptive. 

HOLLAND   HOUSE. 

To  describe  London,  as  we  said  before,  would  fill 
a  volume,  but  space  forbids  lingering  longer,  and  we 
will  pass  out  of  the  metropolis,  after  devoting  brief 
attention  to  one  of  its  historical  mansions,  the  well- 
known  Holland  House.  This  fine  old  building  of 
the  time  of  James  I.  stands  upon  high  ground  in  the 
westero  suburbs  of  London,  and  its  history  is  inter- 
woven with  several  generations  of  arts,  politics,  and 
literature.  The  house  is  of  red  brick,  embellished 
with  turrets,  gable-ends,  and  mullioned  windows. 
As  its  park  has  already  been  partly  cut  up  for  build- 
ing-lots, the  end  of  the  celebrated  mansion  itself  is 
believed  to  be  not  far  off.  Built  in  1G07,  it  de- 
scended to  the  first  Earl  of  Holland,  whence  its 
name.  Surviving  the  Civil  Wars,  when  Fairfax 
used  it  for  his  head-quarters,  it  is  noted  that  plays 
were  privately  performed  here  in  Cromwell's  time. 
In  1710,  Addison  married  the  dowager  Countess  of 
Holland  and  Warwick,  and  the  estate  passed  to  him, 
and  he  died  at  Holland  House  in  1719,  having  ad- 
dressed to  his  stepson,  the  dissolute  Earl  of  Warwick, 
the  solemn  words,  *^  I  have  sent  for  you  that  you  may 
see  how  a  Christian  can  die."  Two  years  later  the 
y(»uiig  earl  himself  died.  In  1702  the  estate  was 
sold  to  Henry  Vassall  Fox,  Baron  Holland,  the 
famous  ^^'hig,  who  died  there  in  1774.  It  is  related 
that   during   his   last  illness  George    Selwyn   called 


HOLLAND  HOUSE.  281 

and  left  Ins  card.  Schvyn  had  a  fondness  for  seeing 
dead  bodies,  and  the  dying  lord  remarked,  "If  Mr. 
Selwyn  calls  again,  show  him  up  :  if  I  am  alive  I 
shall  be  delighted  to  see  him,  and  if  I  am  dead  he 
■would  like  to  see  me."  He  composed  his  own 
epitaph  :  "  Here  lies  Henry  Vassall  Fox,  Lord  Hol- 
land, etc.,  who  was  drowned  while  sitting  in  his 
elbow-chair."  He  died  in  his  elbow-chair,  of  water 
in  the  chest.  Charles  James  Fox  was  his  second 
son,  and  passed  his  early  years  at  Holland  House. 
Near  the  mansion,  on  the  Kensington  Road,  was  the 
Adam  and  Eve  Inn,  where  it  is  said  that  Sheridan, 
on  his  way  to  and  from  Holland  House,  regularly 
stopped  for  a  dram,  and  thus  ran  up  a  long  bill, 
which  Lord  Holland  ultimately  paid. 

The  house,  built  like  half  the  letter  H,  is  of  red 
brick  with  stone  finishings,  and  in  the  Elizabethan 
style,  with  Dutch  gardens  of  a  later  date.  Much  of 
the  old-time  decorations  and  furniture  remains.  The 
library,  a  long  gallery,  forms  the  eastern  wing,  and 
contains  a  valuable  collection,  including  many  manu- 
scripts and  autographs.  There  are  fine  pictures  and 
sculptures,  with  old  clocks,  vases,  cabinets,  and  carv- 
ings, and  also  a  celebrated  collection  of  miniatures. 
For  over  two  centuries  it  was  the  favorite  resort  of 
wits  and  beauties,  painters  and  poets,  scholars,  ])hi- 
losophers,  and  statesmen.  Lord  Brougham  says 
that  in  the  time  of  Vassall,  Lord  Holland,  it  was  the 
meeting-place  of  the  Whig  party,  his  liberal  hospi- 


282   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

tality  being  a  great  attractive  force,  and  ^lacaulay 
writes  that  it  can  boast  a  greater  number  of  inmates 
distinguished  in  political  and  literary  history  than 
any  other  j)rivate  dwelling  in  England.  After  Vas- 
sall's  death  his  nephew  maintained  the  reputation  of 
Holland  House,  dying  in  1840,  when  tlie  estates  de- 
scended to  his  only  son,  the  late  Lord  Holland,  who 
also  kept  up  the  character  of  the  mansion.  But 
now,  however,  the  glory  of  the  famous  old  house  has 
chiefly  become  a  fragrant  memory. 

North-eastward  from  London  is  the  great  park 
which  the  queen  in  1882  opened  with  much  pomp  as 
a  breathinj^-ffround  for  the  masses  of  that  densely- 
populated  region,  the  east  end  of  the  metropolis — 
Epping  Eorest.  This  beautiful  enclosure  originally 
consisted  of  nine  thousand  acres,  but  encroachments 
reduced  it  to  about  one-third  that  size.  Reclama- 
tions were  made,  however,  and  the  park  now  opened 
covers  five  thousand  six  hundred  acres  with  richly 
wooded  heights — a  magnificent  pleasure-ground. 

GKEEXWICII. 

The  river  Thames,  steadily  gathering  force  after 
sweeping  through  London  past  the  docks,  and  re- 
ceiving upon  its  capacious  bosom  the  vast  commerce 
of  all  the  world,  encircles  the  Isle  of  Dogs  (where 
Jlenry  VHL  kept  his  hounds)  below  the  city,  and  at 
the  southern  extremity  of  the  reach  we  come  to 
(Jreenwich.     Here  go  many  holiday-parties   to  the 


GREENWICH.  283 

famous  iniis^  wlicrc  they  get  tlie  Greenwich  fish- 
dinners  and  can  look  back  at  the  great  city  they  have 
left.  Here  the  ministry  at  the  close  of  the  session 
has  its  annual  white-bait  dinner.  Greenwich  was 
the  Roman  Grenovicum  and  the  ISaxon  Green  Town. 
Here  encamped  the  Danes  when  they  overran  Eng- 
land in  the  eleventh  century,  and  their  fleet  Avas 
anchored  in  the  Thames.  It  became  a  royal  resi- 
dence in  Edward  L's  time,  and  Henry  IV.  dated  his 
will  at  the  manor  of  Greenwich.  In  1437,  Green- 
wich Castle  was  built  within  a  park,  and  its  tower 
is  now  used  for  the  Observatory.  Humphrey,  Duke 
of  Gloucester,  then  held  Greenwich,  and  Mas  the 
regent  of  England  during  Henry  VI.'s  minority. 
He  was  assassinated  by  rivals  in  1447,  and  the 
manor  reverted  to  the  Crown.  The  palace  was  en- 
larged and  embellished,  and  Henry  VIII.  was  born 
there  in  1491.  He  greatly  improved  the  palace, 
and  made  it  his  favorite  residence.  Queen  Elizabeth 
being  born  there  in  1533.  King  P^dward  VI.  died 
at  Greenwich  in  1553,  and  Elizabeth,  enlarging  the 
palace,  kept  a  regular'  court  there.  It  Avas  lier 
favorite  summer-home,  and  the  chronicler  of  the 
time,  Avriting  of  a  visit  to  the  place,  says,  in  describ- 
ing the  ceremonial  of  Elizabeth's  court,  that  the 
presence-chamber  was  hung  with  rich  tapestry,  and 
the  floor,  after  the  then  fashion,  was  covered  with 
rushes.  At  the  door  stood  a  gentleman  in  velvet 
with  a  gold  chain,  who  introduced  persons  of  distinc- 


284    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE, 

tion  who  came  to  attend  the  queen.  A  large  number 
of  liigh  officials  waited  for  the  queen  to  appear  on  her 
w<iy  to  chapel.  Ultimately  she  came  out,  accompanied 
by  a  gorgeous  escort.  She  is  described  as  sixty- 
five  years  old,  very  majestic,  with  an  oblong  face, 
fair  but  wrinkled,  small  black,  pleasant  eyes,  nose  a 
little  hooked,  narrow  lips,  and  black  teeth  (caused 
by  eating  too  much  sugar).  She  Avore  false  red 
hair,  and  had  a  small  crown  on  her  head  and  rich 
pearl  drops  in  her  cars,  with  a  necklace  of  fine 
jewels  falling  upon  her  uncovered  bosom.  Her  air 
was  stately,  and  her  manner  of  speech  mild  and 
oblijirinff.  Siie  wore  a  white  silk  dress  bordered 
with  large  pearls,  and  over  it  was  a  black  silk  mantle 
embroidered  with  silver  thread.  Her  long  train  was 
borne  by  a  marchioness.  She  spoke  graciously  to 
those  whom  she  passed,  occasionally  giving  her 
right  hand  to  a  favored  one  to  kiss.  AVhenever  she 
turned  her  face  in  going  .along  everybody  fell  on 
their  knees.  The  ladies  of  the  court  following  her 
were  mostly  dressed  in  Avhite.  Reaching  the  ante- 
chapel,  petitions  were  presented  her,  she  receiving 
them  graciously,  which  caused  cries  of  "■  Long  live 
Queen  Elizabetli !"  She  answered,  "  I  thank  you, 
my  good  pcoplo,"  and  thou  went  in  to  the  service. 

King  James  I.,  put  a  new  front  in  the  palace,  and 
his  queen  laid  the  foundation  of  the  "  House  of  De- 
light," which  is  now  the  central  building  of  the 
Kaval  Asylum.     King  Charles  I.  resided  much  at 


GEEENWICH.  285 

Greenwich,  and  finished  the  "  House  of  Delight," 
which  was  the  most  magnificently  furnished  mansion 
then  in  England.  King  Charles  IL,  finding  the 
palace  decayed,  for  it  had  fallen  into  neglect  during 
the  Civil  Wars,  had  it  taken  down,  and  began  the 
erection  of  a  new  palace,  Luilt  of  freestone.  In  the 
time  of  William  and  Mary  it  became  the  Royal 
Naval  Asylum,  the  magnificent  group  of  buildings 
now  there  being  extensions  of  Charles  II. 's  palace, 
while  behind  rises  the  Observatory,  and  beyond  is 
the  foliage  of  the  park.  The  asylum  was  opened 
in  1705,  and  consists  of  quadrangular  buildings  en- 
closing a  square.  In  the  south-western  building  is 
tlie  Painted  Hall,  adorned  with  portraits  of  British 
naval  heroes  and  pictures  of  naval  victories.  The 
asylum  supports  about  seven  thousand  pensioners, 
while  it  has  a  school  with  eight  hundred  scholars, 
and  a  medical  hospital  for  wounded  seamen.  Its 
income  is  about  $750,000  yearly.  The  Greenwich 
Observatory,  besides  being  the  centre  whence  longi- 
tude is  reckoned,  is  also  charged  with  the  regulation 
of  time  throughout  the  kingdom. 

The  Thames,  which  at  London  Bridge  is  eiglit 
hundred  feet  wide,  becomes  one  thousand  feet  wide 
at  Greenwich,  and  then  it  pursues  its  crooked,  wind- 
ing course  between  uninteresting  sliores  past  Wool- 
wich dockyard,  where  it  is  a  quarter  of  a  mile  wide, 
and  on  to  Gravesend,  where  the  width  is  half  a  mile  ; 
then  it  broadens  into  an  estuary  Avhich  is  eighteen 


286   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

miles  wide  at  tlic  mouth.  Almost  the  only  thing 
that  relieves  the  dull  prospect  along  the  lower 
Thames  is  Shooter's  Hill,  behind  Woolwich,  which 
rises  four  hundred  and  twelve  feet.  Southward  of 
the  Thames  below  Woolwich  is  Dartford,  where  the 
first  English  })aper-mill  was  erected  in  Queen  Eliza- 
beth's time,  the  grave  of  its  founder  being  in  the 
church,  and  from  his  crest — a  fool's  cap — the  name 
of  foolscap  paper,  which  he  made,  is  derived.  Here 
also  lived  the  rebel  Wat  Tyler,  who  began  his  revolt 
by  killing  the  Dartford  tax-collector  in  1381.  His 
opinion  of  tax-gatherers  has  been  often  reflected 
since.  Gravescnd,  twenty-six  miles  below  London 
Bridge  by  the  river,  is  the  outer  boundary  of  the 
])ort  of  London,  and  is  the  head-quarters  of  the 
lioyal  Thames  Yacht  Club.  Its  long  piers  are  the 
first  landing-place  of  foreign  vessels.  Gravesend  is 
the  head-fpiarters  for  shrimps,  its  fishermen  taking 
them  in  vast  numbers  and  London  consuming  a  pro- 
digious quantity.  This  fishing  and  custom-house 
town,  for  it  is  a  combination  of  both,  has  its  streets 
filled  with  ''  tea-  and  shrimp-houses." 

TILBURY    FORT. 

On  the  opposite  bank  of  the  Thames  is  Tilbury 
Fort,  the  noted  fortress  that  commands  the  naviga- 
tion of  the  river  and  protects  the  entrance  to  Lon- 
don. It  dates  from  Charles  II.'s  time,  fright  from 
De  Kuyter's  Dutch  incursion  up  the  Thames  in  1667 


TILBURY  FORT.  287 

having  led  the  government  to  convert  Henry  VIII. 's 
blockhouse  that  stood  there  into  a  strong  fortification. 
It  was  to  Tilburj  that  Queen  Elizabeth  went  when 
she  defied  the  Spanish  Armada.  Leicester  put  a 
bridge  of  boats  across  the  river  to  obstruct  the  pas- 
sage, and  gathered  an  army  of  eighteen  thousand 
men  on  shore.  Here  the  queen  made  her  bold 
speech  of  defiance,  in  which  she  said  she  knew  she 
had  the  body  of  but  a  weak  and  feeble  woman,  but 
she  also  had  the  heart  and  stomach  of  a  king,  and 
rather  than  her  realm  should  be  invaded  and  dis- 
honor grow  by  her,  she  herself  would  take  up  arms. 
8he  had  then,  all  told,  one  hundred  and  thirty  thou- 
sand soldiers  and  one  hundred  and  eighty-one  war- 
vessels,  but  the  elements  conquered  the  "  Invincible 
Armada,"  barely  one-third  of  it  getting  back  to 
Spain.  Southend,  out  in  the  Thames  estuary, 
thirty-six  miles  below  London,  is  a  great  resort  for 
excursionists,  having  a  spacious  esplanade  and  a  pier 
over  a  mile  long,  Avith  golf-links  and  other  amuse- 
ments. Further  down  is  Shoeburyness  at  the  mouth, 
the  government  station  for  artillery  practice,  with  a 
long  gun-range  where  the  ordnance  trials  take  place, 
and  the  artillery  volunteers  have  a  competitive 
exhibition  in  summer. 

Thus  we  have  traced  England's  famous  river  from 
its  source  in  the  Cotswolds  until  it  falls  into  the 
North  Sea  at  the  mouth  of  the  broad  estuary  beyond 
Sheerness   and   the    Nore.      Knowing   the   tale   of 


288   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

grandeur  that  its  banks  unfold,  Wordsworth's  feel- 
ings can  be  understood  as  he  halted  upon  Westmin- 
ster Bridge  in  the  early  morning  and  looked  down 
the  Thames  upon  London  ;  its  mighty  heart  was  still 
and  its  houses  seemed  asleep  as  the  tranquil  scene 
inspired  the  great  poet  to  write  his  sonnet : 

"  Earth  has  not  anything  to  show  more  fair; 

Dull  would  he  be  of  soul  who  could  pass  by 

A  siglit  so  touching  in  its  majesty : 
This  city  now  doth  like  a  garment  wear 
The  beauty  of  tlie  morning ;  silent,  bare, 

Ships,  towers,  domes,  theatres,  and  temples  lie 

Open  unto  the  fields  and  to  the  sky  ; 
All  bright  and  glittering  in  the  smokeless  air. 
Never  did  sun  more  beautifully  steep 

In  his  first  splendor  valley,  rock,  or  hill ; 
Ne'er  saw  I,  never  felt,  a  calm  so  deep  I 

The  river  glideth  at  his  own  sweet  will ; 
Dear  Gml !  the  very  houses  seem  asleep, 

And  all  that  mighty  heart  is  lying  still." 


LONDON   TO   CAMBRIDGE  AND 
NORWICH. 


Vot.  1.— 19 


V. 

LONDON  TO  CAMBRIDGE  AND  NORWICH. 

Harrow — St.  Albans — Verulam — Hatfield  House — Lord  Burleigh — 
Cassiobury — Knebworth — ^Great  Bed  of  Ware — The  river  Cam 
— Audley  End — Saffron  Wal den —Newport — Nell  Gwynn — 
Littlebury — Winstanley — Harwich — Cambridge — Trinity  and 
St.  John's  Colleges— Caius  College — Trinity  Hall — The  Senate 
House — University  Library — Clare  College — Great  St.  Mary's 
Church — King's  College— Corpus  Christi  College — St.  Catha- 
rine's College — Queens'  College — -The  Pitt  Press — Pembroke 
College — Peterhouse — Fitzwilliam  Museum — Hobson's  Conduit 
— Do\vning  College — Emmanuel  College — ('hrist's  College — 
Sidney-Sussex  College — The  Round  Church — Magdalene  Col- 
lege— Jesus  College — Trumpington — The  Fenland — Bury  St. 
Edmunds — Hengrave  Hall  —  Ely — Peterborough  —  Crowland 
Abbey — Guthlac— Norwich  Castle  and  Cathedral. 

HARROW   AND    ST.    ALBANS. 

From  the  great  metropolis  of  England  let  us  ex- 
plore the  northern  suburbs  and  then  seek  for  further 
knowledge  beyond.  On  the  outskirts  of  London,  in 
the  north-western  suburbs,  is  the  well-known  school 
founded  over  three  hundred  years  ago  by  John 
Lyon,  yeoman,  at  Harrow-on-the-Hill,  standing  on  a 
hill  two  hundred  feet  high.  The  buildings  accommo- 
date about  six  hundred  and  thirty  scholars,  and 
the  panels  of  the  great  school-room  are  covered  with 

291 


292    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

tlie  rude  carvings  of  the  boys'  names,  including 
Byron,  Peel,  and  Palmerston.  Sheridan  and  Spencer 
Perceval  were  also  educated  here.  A  flat  tomb- 
stone in  the  churchyard,  on  which  Byron  used  to  lie 
when  at  school,  is  pointed  out,  and  the  lofty  spire  of 
Harrow  Church  is  a  conspicuous  object  in  the  land- 
scape for  many  miles  around.  To  the  eastward  is 
Edmonton,  where  Charles  Lamb  died  in  1834,  and  is 
buried  in  the  churchyard  with  his  sister  Mary,  who 
survived  him  a  few  years.  John  Keats  was  appren- 
ticed to  a  surgeon,  and  wrote  his  '^  Juvenile  Poems" 
here  between  1810  and  181G.  Cheshunt  near  by, 
noted  for  its  rose  gardens,  has  the  house  in  which 
Richard  Cromwell  died.  Also  in  the  neighborhood 
is  Enfield,  famous  for  the  government  rifle-factory. 
Lamb  lived  at  Enfield  for  several  years,  and  Keats 
and  Captain  ^larryat  were  educated  there. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  towns  north  of  Lon- 
don, for  its  historical  associations  and  anti(piarian 
remains,  is  St.  Albans  in  Hertfordshire.  Here,  on 
the  opposite  slopes  of  a  shelving  valley,  are  seen  on 
the  one  hand  the  town  that  has  clustered  around  the 
ancient  abbey  of  St.  Albans,  and  on  the  other 
the  ruins  of  the  fortification  of  Verulam,  both 
relics  of  Roman  power  and  magnificence.  On  this 
spot  stood  the  chief  town  of  the  Cassii,  whose  king, 
Cassivelaunus,  vainly  opposed  the  inroads  of  Caisar. 
Here  the  victoi*ious  Roman,  after  crossing  the 
Thames,  besieged  and  finally  overthrew  the  Britons. 


HARROW   AND  ST.  ALBANS.  293 

The  traces  of  the  ancient  eartliworks  are  still  plainly 
seen  on  the  banks  of  the  little  river  Ver,  and  when 
the  Romans  got  possession  there  arose  the  flourishing 
town  of  Verulain,  which  existed  until  the  British 
warrior-queen,  Boadicea,  stung  by  the  oppressions 
of  her  race,  stormed  and  captured  the  place  and 
ruthlessly  massacred  its  people.  But  her  triumph 
was  short  lived,  for  the  Romans,  gaining  reinforce- 
ments, recaptured  the  city.  This  was  in  the  earlier 
days  of  the  Christian  era,  and  at  a  time  when  Chris- 
tian persecutions  raged.  There  then  lived  in  Veru- 
1am  a  prominent  man  named  Alban,  a  young  Roman 
of  good  family,  Avho  had  been  a  soldier.  In  the  year 
303  a  persecuted  priest  named  Amphibalus  threw 
himself  upon  the  mercy  of  Alban,  and  sought  refuge 
in  his  house.  The  protection  was  granted,  and  in  a 
few  days  the  exhortations  of  Amphibalus  had  con- 
verted his  protector  to  Christianity.  The  officials 
getting  word  of  Amphibalus's  whereabouts,  sent  a 
guard  to  arrest  him,  whereupon  Alban  dismissed  his 
guest  secretly,  and,  "wrapping  himself  in  the  priest's 
robe  and  hood,  awaited  the  soldiers.  They  seized 
him,  and  took  him  before  the  magistrates,  when  the 
trick  was  discovered.  He  was  given  the  alternative 
of  dying  or  sacrificing  to  the  gods  of  Rome,  but, 
preferring  the  crown  of  martyrdom,  after  cruel  tor- 
ments he  was  led  to  his  doom.  He  was  to  be  taken 
across  the  Ver  to  be  beheaded,  but  miracles  ap- 
peared.      The    stream,    which    had    been    a-flood, 


294  ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

quickly  dried  up,  so  tliat  the  multitude  could  pass, 
and  this  so  touched  the  executioner  that  he  refused 
to  strike  the  blow  and  declared  himself  also  a  con- 
vert. The  executioner's  head  was  quickly  stricken 
off,  and  another  headsman  obtained.  Alban  mean- 
while was  athirst,  and  at  his  prayer  a  spring  broke 
from  the  ground  for  his  refreshment.  The  new  exe- 
cutioner struck  off  Alban's  head,  but  in  doing  so 
liis  eyes  dropped  from  their  sockets.  Holmhurst 
Hill,  near  the  town,  is  supposed  to  have  been  the 
scone  of  liis  martyrdom  in  the  year  304.  His  death 
did  not  save  Amphibalus,  who  was  soon  captured 
and  killed  at  Kedburn,  a  few  miles  away,  whore  his 
relics  were  afterwards  discovered  and  enshrined, 
like  those  of  his  pu})il,  in  the  abbey. 

The  sacrifice  of  the  protomartyr  brought  its  fruits. 
Verulam  became  Christian,  and  within  a  century 
was  paying  him  the  honors  of  a  saint.  In  the  eighth 
century  King  Offa  of  ^fercia,  having  treacherously 
murdered  King  Ethelbert,  became  conscience- 
stricken,  and  to  propitiate  Heaven  founded  the 
abbey.  He  built  a  Benedictine  monastery,  Avhich 
■was  richly  endowed,  and  gradually  attracted  the 
town  away  from  Verulam  and  over  to  its  present 
site.  This  monastery  existed  until  the  Norman  Con- 
quest, Avhen  it  was  rebuilt,  the  ruins  of  Verulam 
serving  as  a  quarry  whence  Roman  tiles  and  other 
materials  were  taken.  Thus  began  the  great  abbey 
of  St.  Albans,  which  still  overlooks  the  Ver,  although 


HARROW  AND  ST.  ALBANS.  295 

it  has  been  materially  altered  since.  It  prospered 
greatly,  and  the  close  neighborhood  to  London 
brought  many  pilgrims  as  well  as  royal  visits.  The 
abbots  were  invested  with  great  powers  and  became 
dictatorial  and  proud,  having  frequent  contests  with 
the  townsfolk ;  and  it  is  recorded  that  one  young 
man  who  applied  for  admission  to  the  order,  being 
refused  on  account  of  his  ignorance,  went  abroad 
and  ultimately  became  Pope  Adrian  IV.  But  he 
bore  the  abbey  no  ill-will,  afterwards  granting  it 
many  favors.  Cardinal  Wolsey  was  once  the  abbot, 
but  did  not  actively  govern  it.  In  1539  its  down- 
fall came,  and  it  surrendered  to  King  Henry  VIII. 
The  deed  of  surrender,  signed  by  thirty-nine  monks, 
is  still  preserved,  and  the  seal  is  in  the  British  Mu- 
seum. The  abbey  is  now  in  ruins  ;  the  church  and 
gateway  remain,  but  the  great  group  of  buildings 
that  composed  it  has  mostly  disappeared,  so  that 
the  old  monastery  is  almost  as  completely  effaced  as 
Verulam.  But  the  church,  by  being  bought  for 
$2000  for  the  St.  Albans  parish  church,  is  still  pre- 
served, and  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  ecclesias- 
tical structures  in  England  ;  yet  its  great  length  and 
massive  central  tower  are  rather  unfavorable  to  its 
picturesqueness,  though  the  tower  when  seen  from  a 
distance  impresses  by  its  grandeur  and  simplicity. 
In  this  tower,  as  well  as  in  other  parts  of  the  church, 
can  be  detected  the  ancient  tiles  from  Verulam.  The 
ground-plan  of  St.  Albans  Church  is  a  Latin  cross, 


29G    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

and  it  is  tive  Imndrcd  and  forty-eiglit  feet  long.  Tlie 
western  part  was  erected  in  the  twelfth,  and  the  greater 
portion  of  the  nave  and  choir  in  the  thirteenth,  cen- 
tury. This  church  was  advanced  to  the  dignity  of  a 
cathedral  in  1877,  when  the  new  Episcopal  See  of 
St.  Albans  was  created,  and  it  is  not  only  one  of  the 
largest,  but  it  is  said  to  be  the  highest  cathedral  in 
England,  being  elevated  three  hundred  and  forty 
feet  above  sea  level.  It  has  been  thoroughly  re- 
stored at  a  cost  of  SG50,000.  The  floor  of  the  choir 
is  almost  paved  with  sepulchral  slabs,  though  of  the 
two  hundred  monuments  the  church  once  contained 
barely  a  dozen  remain.  At  the  back  of  the  high 
altar  was  the  great  treasury  of  the  abbey,  the  shrine 
enclosing  St.  Alban's  relics,  but  this  was  destroyed 
at  the  Reformation  :  some  fragments  have  since  been 
discovered,  and  the  shrine  thus  reproduced  with 
tolerable  completeness.  On  the  side  of  the  chapel 
is  a  wooden  gallery,  with  cupboards  beneath  and  a 
staircase  leading  up  to  it.  In  the  shrine  and  cup- 
boards were  the  abbey  treasures,  and  in  the  gallery 
the  monks  kept  watch  at  night  lest  they  should  be 
despoiled.  This  vigilance,  we  are  told,  was  neces- 
sary, for  rival  abbeys  Avere  by  no  means  scrupulous 
about  the  means  by  which  they  augmented  their 
stores  of  relics.  This  quaint  gallery,  still  preserved, 
is  five  hundred  years  old.  Near  the  shrine  is  the 
tomb  of  Duke  Humphrey  of  Gloucester,  brother  of 
King  Henry  V.  and  regent  during  the  minority  of 


HARROW  AND  ST.  ALBANS.  297 

Henry  VI.,  who  was  assassinated  at  Windsor.  The 
tomb  was  opened  in  1703,  and  the  skeleton  found 
buried  among  spices  and  enclosed  in  two  coffins,  the 
outer  of  lead.  The  vault  remained  opened,  and 
visitors  purloined  good  Humphrey's  bones  till  nearly 
all  had  disappeared,  when  the  authorities  con- 
cluded it  was  better  to  close  up  the  vault  and  save 
what  remained.  The  massive  gatehouse,  which  still 
exists,  was  built  in  Richard  II. 's  reign,  and  was 
used  for  a  jail  until  not  long  ago  they  determined 
to  put  a  school  there.  In  front  of  it  the  martyr 
Tankerfield  was  burnt,  and  buried  in  1555  in  a 
little  triangular  graveyard  which  still  exists.  Foxe, 
in  his  JBooh  of  Martyrs,  relates  that  he  endured  the 
pain  with  great  constancy,  and  testified  to  the  last 
against  the  errors  of  his  persecutors. 

In  the  town  of  St.  Albans,  near  the  abbey  and  at 
the  junction  of  two  streets,  stands  the  ancient  clock- 
tower,  built  in  the  early  part  of  the  fifteenth  cen- 
tury, and  mainly  of  flint.  It  occupies  the  site  of  an 
earlier  one  said  to  have  been  erected  by  two  ladies 
of  Verulam,  who,  wandering  alone  in  the  woods  and 
becoming  lost,  saw  a  light  in  a  house,  sought  refuge 
there,  and  erected  the  tower  on  the  site  as  a  memorial 
of  their  deliverance.  The  bell  in  this  tower  was 
in  former  days  used  to  ring  the  curfcAV.  The  town 
itself  has  little  to  show.  In  the  church  of  St.  Peter, 
among  the  monumental  brasses,  is  the  one  to  a  priest, 
often  quoted,  that  reads  : 


298   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

"  Ix),  all  that  here  T  spent,  that  some  time  had  1 ; 
All  that  I  gave  in  good  intent,  that  now  have  I ; 
Tiiat  I  neither  giive  nor  lent,  that  now  abie*  I  ; 
That  I  kept  till  I  went,  that  lost  I." 

Edward  Strong,  the  mason  who  built  St.  Paul's  Ca- 
thedral in  London  under  the  direction  of  Wren,  is 
also  buried  in  this  church.  Its  chief  tenants,  how- 
ever, are  the  slain  at  the  second  battle  of  St.  Albans 
in  the  Wars  of  the  Roses.  At  the  first  of  these 
battles,  fought  in  1455  on  the  east  side  of  the  town, 
Henry  of  Lancaster  was  wounded  and  captured  by 
the  Duke  of  York.  Tiie  second  battle,  a  much  more 
important  contest,  was  fought  on  Shrove  Tuesday, 
February  17,  14G1,  at  Barnard's  Heath,  north  of 
the  town,  and  near  St.  Peter's  Church.  Queen  ^lar- 
garet  of  Lancaster  led  her  forces  in  person,  and  was 
victorious  over  the  Yorkists  under  the  Earl  of  War- 
wick, liberating  the  captive  king,  who  Avas  in  the 
enemy's  camp,  and  following  the  battle  by  a  ruthless 
execution  of  prisoners.  King  Henry,  who  had  gone 
to  St.  Alban's  shrine  in  tribulation  when  captured  in 
the  earlier  contest,  also  went  there  again  in  thanks- 
giving Avhen  thus  liberated  six  years  later.  The 
town  of  St.  Albans,  by  the  growth  of  time,  has 
stretched  across  the  Ver,  and  one  straggling  suburb 
reaches  into  the  north-western  angle  of  the  ruins  of 
ancient  Vorulam,  where  it  clusters  around  the  little 
church  of  St.  Michael  within  the  Koman  city.     This 

*  This  word  means  expUUe. 


HATFIELD  HOUSE.  299 

is  a  plain  churcli,  built  in  patches,  parts  of  it  nearly 
a  thousand  years  old,  and  is  the  burial-place  of 
Francis  Bacon,  who  was  Baron  of  Verulam  and  Vis- 
count St.  Albans.  Within  a  niche  on  the  side  of  the 
chancel  is  his  familiar  effigy  in  marble,  where  he  sits 
in  an  arm-chair  and  contemplatively  gazes  upward. 
From  these  ruins  of  Verulam  is  obtained  the  best 
view  of  St.  Alban's  Abbey,  with  the  town  in  the 
background,  overlooked  by  its  clock-tower. 

HATFIELD    HOUSE. 

A  short  distance  east  of  St.  Albans  is  Hatfield,  a 
small  town  on  the  river  Lea,  and  in  a  fine  park  in 
the  suburbs  stands  the  magnificent  mansion  of  the 
Marquis  of  Salisbury — Hatfield  House.  The  place 
is  ancient,  though  the  house  is  completely  modern. 
The  manor  was  given  by  King  Edgar  to  the  monas- 
tery at  Ely,  and,  as  in  course  of  time  the  abbot  be- 
came a  bishop,  the  manor  afterwards  became  known 
as  Bishops  Hatfield,  a  name  that  it  still  bears.  The 
oldest  portion  of  the  present  buildings  was  erected 
in  the  reign  of  Henry  VH.,  and  in  the  time  of  his 
successor  it  passed  into  possession  of  the  Crown. 
Here  lived  young  Edward  VI.,  and  he  was  escorted 
by  the  Earl  of  Hertford  and  a  cavalcade  of  noble- 
men from  Hatfield  to  London  for  his  coronation. 
The  youthful  king  granted  Hatfield  to  his  sister 
Elizabeth,  and  here  she  was  kept  in  Queen  Mary's 
rciffn  after  her  release  from   the  Tower.     She  was 


300    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

iindor  the  guardianship  of  Sir  Thomas  Pope  when, 
in  Xovomber,  1558,  Queen  Mary  died,  and  Sir 
A\'illiani  Cecil  sent  messengers  from  London  to  ap- 
prise Elizabetli  that  the  crown  awaited  her.  We 
are  told  that  when  they  arrived  the  princess  was 
found  in  the  park,  sitting  under  a  spreading  oak — a 
noble  tree  then,  but  time  has  since  made  sad  havoc 
witli  it,  though  the  scanty  remains  are  carefully  pre- 
served as  one  of  the  most  precious  memorials  at 
Hatfield.  The  family  of  Cecil,  thus  introduced  to 
Hatfield,  was  destined  to  continue  associated  with  its 
fortunes.  Sir  William  came  to  the  manor  on  the 
next  day,  and  then  peers  and  courtiers  of  all  iiks 
Hocked  thither  to  worship  the  rising  sun.  On  the 
following  day  the  queen  gave  her  first  reception  in 
the  hall  and  received  the  fealty  of  the  leading  men 
of  every  party  ;  but  she  did  not  forget  Cecil,  for  her 
earliest  act  was  to  appoint  him  her  chief  secretary, 
lord  treasurer,  and  adviser — a  tie  that  continued  for 
forty  years  and  was  only  sundered  by  death.  Cecil 
was  afterwards  niade  Lord  Burghley,  and  the  confi- 
dence thus  first  reposed  in  him  witliin  the  hall  that 
was  afterwards  to  become  the  home  of  his  descend- 
ants was  most  remarkable.  ''  No  arts,"  writes  Lord 
^lacaulay,  "  could  shake  the  confidence  which  she 
reposed  in  her  old  and  trusty  servant.  The  courtly 
graces  of  Leicester,  the  brilliant  talents  and  accom- 
plishments of  Essex,  touched  the  fancy,  perhaps  the 
heart,  of  the  woman,  but  no  rival  could  deprive  the 


Tiatntcr  Brawtno*1Room.  fjatfiel^  t)ouse. 


HATFIELD  HOUSE.  301 

treasurer  of  the  place  which  he  possessed  in  the 
favor  of  the  queen.  She  sometimes  chid  him 
sharply,  but  ho  was  the  man  whom  she  delighted  to 
honor.  For  liurghley  she  forgot  her  usual  parsi- 
mony, both  of  wealth  and  dignities ;  for  Burghley 
she  relaxed  that  severe  etiquette  to  which  she  was 
mireasonably  attached.  Every  other  person  to 
whom  she  addressed  her  speech,  or  on  Avhom  the 
glance  of  her  eagle  eye  fell,  instantly  sank  on  his 
knee.  For  Burghley  alone  a  chair  was  set  in  her 
presence,  and  there  the  old  minister,  by  birth  only  a 
plain  Lincolnshire  esquire,  took  his  ease,  while  the 
haughty  heirs  of  the  Fitzalans  and  De  Veres  hum- 
bled themselves  to  the  dust  around  him.  At  length, 
having  survived  all  his  early  coadjutors  and  rivals, 
he  died,  full  of  years  and  honors." 

But  it  was  not  until  after  his  death  that  Hatfield 
came  into  possession  of  his  family.  He  built 
Burghley  House  near  Stamford  in  Lincolnshire,  and 
left  it  to  his  younger  son.  Sir  Robert  Cecil.  After 
Elizabeth's  death.  King  James  I.  expressed  a  pref- 
erence for  Burghley  over  Hatfield,  and  an  exchange 
was  made  by  which  Hatfield  passed  into  possession 
of  Sir  Robert,  Avho  had  succeeded  his  father  as  chief 
minister,  and,  though  in  weak  health  and  of  small 
stature,  was  a  wise  and  fiiithful  servant  of  the  queen 
and  of  her  successor.  In  Elizabeth's  last  illness, 
Avhen  she  persisted  in  sitting  propped  up  on  a  stool 
with  pillows,  he  urged  her  to  rest  herself,  and  inad- 


302  ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND   DESCRIPTIVE. 

vortcntly  said  she  ''  must  go  to  bod."  The  queen 
fired  up.  "  ^Must  !"  eried  she.  ''  Is  must  a  word  to 
be  addressed  to  prinees  ?  Little  man,  little  man, 
thy  father  if  he  had  been  alive  durst  not  have  used 
that  word."  Sir  Kobert  did  not  survive  the  queen 
many  years,  and  to  liim  King  James's  peaceful  suc- 
cession to  the  throne  is  said  to  have  been  greatly 
due.  The  king  made  him  the  Earl  of  Salisbury, 
and  the  title  descended  for  several  generations, 
until,  in  1773,  the  seventh  earl  was  promoted  to  the 
rank  of  marquis,  and  now  Robert  Cecil,  the  third 
Manjuis  of  Salisbury  the  leader  of  the  Conservative 
party  and  premier  of  P^ngland,  presides  over  the 
estates  at  Hatfield.  The  chief  entrance  to  Hatfield 
House  is  on  the  northern  side,  and  above  it  rises  a 
cupola.  The  buildings  form  three  sides  of  an  oblong, 
the  longer  line  fronting  the  north  and  the  two  wings 
pointing  towards  the  south.  They  arc  of  brick, 
with  stone  dressings  and  facings,  and  are  admired 
as  a  faithful  example  of  the  excellent  domestic 
architecture  of  the  early  part  of  the  seventeenth 
century.  The  approach  through  the  park  from  the 
town  is  of  great  beauty,  the  grand  avenue,  bordered 
by  stately  trees,  conducting  the  visitor  to  a  court  in 
front  of  the  house  enclosed  by  a  balustrade  with 
handsome  gates.  Within  the  building  the  most 
remarkable  features  are  the  galleries,  extending 
along  the  entire  southern  front.  The  gallery  on  the 
ground  floor  was  formerly  a  corridor,  open  on  one 


HATFIELD  HOUSE.  303 

side  to  the  air ;  but  at  a  comparatively  recent  period 
this  has  been  enclosed  with  glass,  and  thus  converted 
into  a  gallery  paved  with  black  and  white  marble, 
and  ornamented  with  arms  and  armor,  some  being 
trophies  from  the  Armada  and  others  from  the 
Crimea.  Here  is  the  rich  saddle-cloth  used  on  the 
white  steed  that  Queen  Elizabeth  rode  at  Tilbury. 
There  are  a  fine  chapel  and  attractive  state-apart- 
ments, but  around  the  old  house  there  lingers  a  tale 
of  sorrow.  The  western  wing  was  burned  in  1835, 
and  the  dowager  marchioness,  the  grandmother  of 
the  present  marquis,  who  was  then  five  years  old, 
perished  in  the  flames,  which  originated  in  her 
chamber.  This  wing  has  been  finely  restored,  and 
the  room  in  which  she  was  burned  contains  her 
portrait,  an  oval  medallion  let  into  the  wall  over  the 
fireplace.  It  is  the  sweet  and  sunny  face  of  a  young 
girl,  and  her  tragic  fate  in  helpless  age  reminds  of 
Solon's  warning  as  Ave  look  at  the  picture  :  "  Count 
no  one  happy  till  he  dies."  In  the  gallery  at  Hat- 
field are  portraits  of  King  Henry  VIII.  and  all  six 
of  his  wives.  In  the  library,  which  is  rich  in  his- 
torical documents,  is  the  pedigree  of  Queen  Elizabeth, 
emblazoned  in  1559,  and  tracing  her  ancestry  in  a 
direct  line  back  to  Adam !  The  state  bedrooms 
have  been  occupied  by  King  James,  Cromwell,  and 
Queen  Victoria.  In  the  gardens,  not  far  from  the 
house,  is  the  site  of  the  old  episcopal  palace  of 
Bishops  Hatfield,  of  which  one  side  remains  stand- 


304    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

ing,  with  the  quaint  gatehouse  now  an  entrance 
for  a  road  up  the  hill  from  the  town  to  the 
stables.  There  is  a  fine  view  of  the  town  through 
the  ancient  gateway.  Here  lived  the  princess 
Elizabeth,  and  in  the  halls  where  kings  have 
banqueted  the  marquis's  horses  now  munch  their 
oats.  Immediately  below,  in  the  town,  is  Salisbury 
Chapel,  in  which  repose  the  bones  of  his  ancestors. 
To  the  northward  of  Hatfield  is  Brocket  Hall,  ^vhich 
was  the  home  of  two  famous  British  prime  ministers, 
Lord  ^lolbourne,  who  died  in  1848,  and  afterwards 
Lord  Palmerston,  who  died  in  1865. 

Also  in  Hertfordshire  are  Cassiobury,  the  seat  of 
the  Earls  of  Essex,  whose  ancester,  Lord  Capel, 
who  was  beheaded  in  1G48  for  his  loyalty  to  King 
Charles  L,  brought  the  estate  into  the  family  by  Bis 
marriage  with  Elizabeth  ^[orison  ;  and  Knebworth, 
the  home  of  Lord  Lytton  the  novelist,  which  has 
been  the  home  of  his  ancestors  since  the  time  of 
Henry  VIL,  when  it  was  bought  by  Sir  Robert 
J^ytton.  The  "  (jlreat  Bed  of  Ware"  is  one  of  the 
curiosities  of  the  county — a  vast  bed  twelve  feet 
square,  originally  at  the  Saracen's  Head  Inn.  It 
Avas  built  for  King  Edward  IV.,  and  was  curiously 
carved,  and  has  had  a  distinguished  place  in  P^nglish 
literary  allusions.  The  bed  still  exists  at  Rye 
House  in  Hertfordshire,  where  it  was  removed  a 
few  yoars  ago.  A  dozen  people  have  slept  in  it  at 
the  same  time. 


AUDLEY  END  AND  SAFFRON   WALDEN.     305 

AUDLEY   END   AND    SAFFRON   WALDEN. 

Journeying  farther  from  London,  and  into  the 
county  of  Essex,  we  come  to  the  village  of  Dunmow, 
which  has  the  ruins  of  an  ancient  priory,  where 
it  was  the  custom,  which  has  recently  been  re- 
vived in  the  village,  to  present  a  flitch  of  bacon  to 
any  married  couple  "  who  have  not  repented  of 
their  marriage  in  a  year  and  a  day."  Beyond,  Ave 
reach  the  little  river  Cam,  and  on  the  side  of 
its  valley,  among  the  gentle  undulations  of  the 
Essex  uplands,  is  seen  the  palace  of  Audley  End, 
and  beyond  it  the  village  of  Saffron  Walden.  Here 
in  earlier  times  was  the  abbey  of  Walden,  which 
■when  dissolved  by  Henry  VIH.,  was  granted  to  Sir 
Thomas  Audley,  who  then  stood  high  in  royal  favor. 
But  almost  all  remains  of  this  abbey  have  dis- 
appeared, and  Sir  Tliomas,  who  was  Speaker  of  the 
House,  got  the  grant  because  of  his  industry  in  pro- 
moting the  king's  wishes  for  the  dissolution  of  the 
religious  houses,  and  was  also  made  Lord  Audley  of 
Walden.  This,  as  Fuller  tells  us,  was  "a  dainty 
morsel,  an  excellent  receipt  to  clear  the  Speaker's 
voice,  and  make  him  speak  clear  and  Avell  for  his 
master."  But  he  did  not  live  long  to  enjoy  it, 
although  giving  the  estate  his  name,  and  it  passed 
ultimately  to  the  Duke  of  Norfolk,  after  Avhose 
execution  it  1>ecame  the  property  of  his  son.  Lord 
Thomas  Howard,  whom  Queen  Elizabeth  made 
Vol.  I.— 20 


306   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Jiaron  WalJcn,  and  King  James  appointed  lord 
treasurer  and  promoted  to  be  Earl  of  Suffolk,  He 
built  the  great  palace  of  Audley  End,  which  was 
intended  to  eclipse  every  palace  then  existing  in 
England.  It  was  begun  in  1603,  and  was  finished 
in  1616,  the  date  still  remaining  upon  one  of  the 
gateways.  King  James  twice  visited  Audley  End 
while  building,  and  is  said  to  have  remarked,  as  he 
viewed  its  enormous  proportions,  that  the  house  was 
too  large  for  a  king,  though  it  might  do  for  a  lord 
treasurer.  It  cost  over  $1,000,000,  but  no  accurate 
account  was  kept,  and  the  earl  was  so  straitened  by 
the  outlay,  that  after  being  dismissed  from  office  he 
was  compelled  to  sell  out  several  other  estates,  and 
died  nearly  8200,000  in  debt.  The  second  and  third 
earls  tried  to  maintain  the  white  elephant,  but  foimd 
it  too  heavy  a  burden,  and  the  latter  sold  the  house 
to  King  Charles  11.  for  $250,000,  of  which  $100,000 
remained  on  mortsra^rc.  It  was  known  as  the  New 
Palace,  and  became  a  royal  residence.  It  consisted 
of  a  large  outer  court  and  a  smaller  inner  one. 
Around  these  the  buildings  were  constructed  from 
one  to  three  stories  liigh,  with  towers  at  the  corners 
and  centres  of  the  fronts.  The  impression  produced 
by  the  design  is  said  not  to  have  been  very  favor- 
able, it  being  insufficiently  grand  for  so  vast  a  pile, 
and  while  it  was  a  pleasant  residence  in  summer, 
the  want  of  facilities  for  heating  made  it  in  winter 
little  better  than  a  barn.     When  Pepys  visited  Aud- 


AUDLEY  END  AND  SAFFRON  WALDEN.     307 

ley  End  in  1660  and  1668,  his  chief  impression 
seems  to  have  been  of  the  cellars,  for  he  writes : 
"  Only  the  gallery  is  good,  and,  above  all  things, 
the  cellars,  Avhere  we  went  down  and  drank  of  much 
good  liquor.  And,  indeed,  the  cellars  are  fine,  and 
here  my  wife  and  I  did  sing,  to  my  great  content." 
It  was  in  the  following  year  that  the  house  was  sold 
to  the  king.  In  1701,  however,  it  passed  back  to 
the  fifth  Earl  of  Suffolk,  and  about  twenty  years 
later  a  large  part  of  the  structure  was  taken  down. 
Three  sides  of  the  great  court,  including  the  gallery 
referred  to  by  Pepys,  were  demolished,  and  Audley 
End  Avas  reduced  to  the  buildings  around  the  smaller 
quadrangle ;  this  was  further  reduced  in  1749,  so 
that  the  house  assumed  its  present  appearance  of 
three  sides  of  a  square,  open  towards  the  east,  and 
thus  remains  an  excellent  type  of  an  early  Jacobean 
mansion,  its  best  view  being  from  the  garden  front. 
Within  it  has  fine  apartments,  and  contains  the  only 
authentic  portrait  of  George  II.  that  is  known. 
This  king  would  never  sit  for  his  picture,  and  the 
artist  by  stealth  sketched  his  likeness  from  a  closet 
near  the  staircase  of  Kensington  Palace,  where  he 
had  an  excellent  view  of  the  peculiar  monarch.  It 
is,  as  Thackeray  says,  the  picture  of  a  "red-faced, 
staring  princeling,"  but  is  believed  true  to  nature 
nevertheless.  Lady  Suffolk,  it  seems,  was  one  of 
this  king's  few  favorites.  Audley  End  has  been  for 
a  long  time  in  possession  of  the  Barons  of  Bray- 


308  j:xgland,  picturesque  and  descriptive. 

brookc,  and  is  their  principal  seat.  Lord  Corn- 
wallis,  of  American  lievoliitionary  remembrance, 
was  a  member  of  this  family,  and  his  portrait  is 
preserved  here. 

Over  tlic  inidulatinf^  surface  of  tlie  park,  barely 
a  mile  away,  can  be  seen  the  pretty  spire  of  Saffron 
Walden  Church,  with  the  village  clustering  around 
it.  Here  on  a  hill  stand  the  church  and  the  castle, 
originally  of  Walden,  but  from  the  extensive  culti- 
vation of  saffron  in  the  neighborhood  the  town  came 
to  have  that  prefix  given  it ;  it  was  grown  there 
from  the  time  of  Edward  III.,  and  the  ancient  his- 
torian Fuller  quaintly  tell  us  "  it  is  a  most  admirable 
cordial,  and  under  God  I  owe  my  life,  when  sick 
with  the  small-pox,  to  the  efficacy  thereof."  Fuller 
goes  on  to  toll  us  that  '^  the  sovereign  power  of  genu- 
ine saffron  is  plainly  proved  by  the  antipathy  of  the 
crocodile  thereto :  for  the  crocodile's  tears  are  never 
true  save  when  he  is  forced  where  saffron  groweth, 
whence  he  hath  his  name  of  croco-deilos,  or  the 
saffron-fearer,  knowing  himself  to  be  all  poison,  and 
it  all  antidote."  Saffron  attained  its  highest  price 
at  Walden  in  (,'harles  II. 's  time,  when  it  was  as  high 
as  twenty  dollars  a  pound,  but  its  disuse  in  medicine 
caused  its  value  to  diminish,  and  at  the  close  of  the 
hist  century  its  culture  had  entirely  disappeared 
from  Walden,  though  the  prefix  still  clings  to  the 
name  f)f  the  town.  While  saffron  was  declining, 
this    neighborhood     became     a    great     producer    of 


AUDLEY  END  AND  SAFFRON   WALDEN.     309 

truffles,  and  tlie  dogs  were  trained  here  to  hunt  the 
fungus  that  is  so  dear  to  the  epicure's  palate.  The 
church  of  St.  Mary,  which  is  a  fine  Perpendicular 
structure  and  the  most  conspicuous  feature  of  Sfiffron 
Walden,  was  built  about  four  hundred  years  ago, 
though  the  slender  spire  crowning  its  western  tower 
is  of  later  date,  having  been  built  in  the  present 
centuiy.  In  the  church  are  buried  the  six  Earls  of 
Suffolk  who  lived  at  Audley  End,  and  all  of  whom 
died  between  1709  and  1745.  The  ruins  of  the  an- 
cient castle,  consisting  chiefly  of  a  portion  of  the 
keep  and  some  rough  arches,  are  not  far  from  the 
church,  and  little  is  known  of  its  origin.  There  is  a 
museum  near  the  ruins  which  contains  some  inter- 
esting antiquities  and  a  fine  natural-history  collec- 
tion. The  modern-built  town-hall,  constructed  in 
antique  style,  overhanging  the  footway  and  sup- 
ported on  arches,  is  one  of  tlie  most  interesting 
buildings  in  Saffron  Walden  :  the  mayor  and  corpora- 
tion meeting  here  date  their  charter  from  1549. 
Not  far  away,  at  Newport,  lived  Nell  Gwynn,  in  a 
modest  cottage  with  a  royal  crown  over  the  door. 
She  was  one  of  the  numerous  mistresses  of  Charles 
II.,  and  is  said  to  have  been  the  only  one  who  re- 
mained faithful  to  him.  She  bore  him  two  sons, 
one  dying  in  childhood,  and  the  other  becoming  the 
Duke  of  St.  Albans,  a  title  created  in  1684,  and 
still  continued  in  the  persons  of  his  descendants 
of  the  family  of  Beauclerc.     Nell  was  originally  an 


310    EINGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

orange-girl  who  developed  into  a  variety  actress, 
and,  fascinating  the  king,  he  bonght  her  from  Lord 
Jjuckhurst,  her  lover,  for  an  earldom  and  a  pension. 
Nell  is  said  to  have  cost  the  king  over  $300,000  in 
fonr  years.  She  had  her  good  qualities  and  was 
very  popular  in  England,  and  she  persuaded  the 
king  to  found  Chelsea  Hospital  for  disabled  soldiers, 
and  he  also  bore  her  genuine  affection,  for  his  dying 
Avords  were,  "  Let  not  poor  Nelly  starve."  She  sur- 
vived him  about  seven  years.  Also  in  the  neighbor- 
hood, at  Littlebury,  was  the  home  of  Winstanley, 
the  builder  of  the  first  Eddystone  Lighthouse,  who 
perished  in  it  when  it  was  destroyed  by  a  terrific 
storm  in  1703. 

Digressing  down  to  the  coast  of  Essex,  on  the 
North  Sea,  we  find  at  the  confluence  of  the  Stour  and 
Orwell  the  best  harbor  on  that  side  of  P^ngland, 
bordered  by  the  narrow  and  old-fashioned  streets  of 
the  ancient  seaport  of  Harwich.  Here  vast  fleets 
seek  shelter  in  easterly  gales  behind  the  breakwater 
that  is  run  out  from  the  Beacon  Hill.  From  here 
sail  many  steamers  to  Rotterdam  and  Antwerp,  and 
other  Holland  and  Belgic  seaports,  in  connection 
with  the  railwavs  from  London,  and  the  harbor-en- 
trance  is  protected  by  the  ancient  Languard  Fort, 
built  by  James  L  on  a  projecting  spit  of  land  now 
joined  to  the  Suffolk  coast  to  the  northward.  One 
of  the  most  interesting  scenes  at  Harwich  is  a  group 
of  old  wrecks  that  has  been  utilized  for  a  series  of 


CAMBRIDGE.  311 

jetties  in  connection  with  a  shipbuilder's  yard. 
Weather-beaten  and  battered,  they  have  been 
moored  in  a  placid  haven,  even  though  it  be  on  the 
unpicturesque  coast  of  Essex. 

CAMBRIDGE. 

Returning  to  the  valley  of  the  Cam,  we  will  follow 
it  down  to  the  great  university  city  of  Cambridge, 
fifty-eight  miles  north  of  London.  It  stands  in  a 
wide  and  open  valley,  and  is  built  on  both  banks  of 
the  river,  which  is  navigable  up  to  this  point,  so 
that  the  town  is  literally  the  "  Bridge  over  the  Cam." 
The  situation  is  not  so  picturesque  nor  so  favorable 
as  that  of  the  sister  university  city  of  Oxford,  but 
it  is  nevertheless  an  attractive  city,  the  stately 
buildings  being  admirably  set  off  by  groups  and 
avenues  of  magnificent  trees  that  flourish  nowhere 
to  better  advantage  than  in  English  scenery.  The 
chief  colleges  are  ranged  along  the  right  bank  of  the 
Cam,  with  their  fronts  away  from  the  water,  while 
behind  each  there  is  a  sweep  of  deliciously  green 
meadow-land  known  as  the  "  Backs  of  the  Colleges," 
surrounded  by  trees,  and  with  a  leafy  screen  of  foli- 
age making  the  background  beyond  the  buildings. 
While  the  greater  part  of  modern  Cambridge  is  ihus 
on  the  right  bank  of  the  river,  the  oldest  portion 
was  located  on  a  low  plateau  forming  the  opposite 
shore.  It  is  uncertain  when  the  university  was  first 
established  there.     Henry  Beauclerc,  the  youngest 


312   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRII^IVE. 

son  of  William  the  Conqueror,  studied  the  arts  and 
sciences  at  Cambridge,  and  when  he  became  king 
he  bestowed  many  privileges  upon  the  town  and  fixed 
a  regular  ferry  over  the  Cam.  A  misty  legend  as- 
cribes the  foundation  of  the  first  seat  of  learning  on 
the  Cam,  or  Granta  as  it  was  anciently  called,  to  a 
►Spanish  prince  named  Cantaber,  three  hundred 
years  before  the  Christian  era.  The  name  of  the 
place  appears  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  Chronicle  as  Granta- 
bryege,  and  later  developed  into  Cantebrigge.  The 
first  establishment  of  a  teaching-body,  as  at  Oxford, 
seems  to  have  taken  place  in  the  twelfth  century, 
the  documentary  history  beginning  in  the  next  cen- 
tury, when  scholars  regularly  assembled,  and  the 
earliest  recognition  of  Cambridge  University  is 
found  in  a  writ  of  the  second  year  of  King  Henry 
III.,  1217.  In  1270,  the  title  of  university  was 
formally  bestowed,  and  the  oldest  known  collegiate 
foundation — Peterhouse,  which  became  St.  Peter's 
College — was  established  in  1284.  The  university 
was  recognized  in  1318  by  Pope  John  XXII.  as  a 
studiuni  gencralc.  As  at  Oxford,  there  were  numer- 
ous early  disputes  between  the  students  and  the 
townsmen,  the  most  serious  being  in  1381,  when  the 
colleges  were  stormed  and  most  of  their  charters 
destroyed.  In  the  Civil  War  Cambridge  did  not 
resist  the  rule  of  tlie  Commonwealth,  though  several 
colleges  sent  their  plate  to  the  king.  Cambridge  has 
in  all  seventeen  colleges  and  one  hostel,  attended  in 


TKINITY  AND  ST.  JOHN'S  COLLEGES.        313 

the  aggregate  by  about  three  thousand  students,  and 
the  present  act  of  incorporation  was  granted  by 
Queen  Elizabeth.  The  Duke  of  Devonshire  is  the 
chancellor.  The  student  graduates  either  '^  in 
Honors  "  or  "  in  the  Poll."  In  the  former  case  he 
can  obtain  a  distinction  in  mathematics,  classics,  the 
sciences,  theology,  etc.  The  names  of  the  success- 
ful students  are  arranged  in  three  classes  in  a  list 
called  the  Tripos,  a  name  derived  from  the  three- 
legged  stool  whereon  sat  in  former  days  one  of  the 
bachelors,  M-^ho  recited  a  set  of  satirical  verses  at 
the  time  the  degrees  were  conferred.  In  the  Mathe- 
matical Tripos  the  first  class  are  called  Wranglers, 
and  the  others  Senior  and  Junior  Optimes.  Thus 
graduate  the  "  Dons  "  of  Cambridge. 

TRINITY   AND    ST.    JOHN's   COLLEGES. 

Let  us  now  take  a  brief  review  of  the  seventeen 
colleges  of  Cambridge.  In  Trinity  Street  is  Trinity 
College,  the  largest  college  in  England,  founded  in 
1546  by  Henry  VIII.  by  combining  several  earlier 
foundations.  It  consists  of  four  quadrangular  courts, 
the  Great  Court  being  the  largest  quadrangle  in  the 
university,  and  entered  from  the  street  by  the  grand 
entrance-tower  known  as  the  King's  Gateway,  of 
most  attractive  construction.  On  the  northern  side 
of  the  quadrangle  are  the  chapel  and  King  Edward's 
Court,  and  in  the  centre  of  the  southern  side  the 
Queen's  Tower,  with  a  statue  of  Queen  Mary.     In 


314    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

the  centre  of  the  quadrangle  is  a  quaint  conduit. 
Tlie  chapel  is  a  plain  wainscoted  room,  with  an 
ante-chapel  tilled  with  busts  of  former  members  of 
the  college — among  them  Bacon  and  Macaulay — and 
also  a  noble  statue  of  Newton.  Trinity  College  Hall 
is  one  hundred  feet  long,  and  is  the  finest  in  Cam- 
bridge, its  walls  being  adorned  with  several  portraits, 
and  in  the  huge  kitchen  dinner  is  daily  cooked  for 
seven  hundred  persons.  It  was  in  Trinity  that  New- 
ton, Bacon,  Byron,  Dryden,  Cowley,  Herbert,  Ma- 
caulay, Thackeray,  and  Tennyson  were  all  students, 
while  Bentley  and  Whewell  were  masters  of  Trinity. 
There  are  said  to  be  few  spectacles  more  impressive 
than  the  choral  service  on  Sunday  evening  in  term- 
time,  when  Trinity  Chapel  is  crowded  with  surpliced 
students.  In  the  Master's  Lodge,  on  the  western 
side  of  the  quadrangle,  are  the  state-apartments" 
where  royalty  is  lodged  when  visiting  Cambridge, 
and  here  also  in  special  apartments  the  judges  are 
housed  when  on  circuit.  Through  screens  or  pas- 
sages in  the  hall  the  second  quadrangle,  Neville's 
Court,  is  entered,  named  for  a  master  of  the  college 
who  died  in  1615.  Here  is  the  library  built  by 
Wren  in  167G,  an  attractive  apartment  supported  on 
columns,  which  contains  Newton's  telescope  and  some 
of  his  manuscripts,  the  manuscripts  of  several  of 
Milton's  poems,  and  also  a  statue  of  Byron.  There 
are  over  one  hundred  thousand  volumes  in  this 
library  and  two  thousand  manuscripts.     The  King's 


TRINITY  AND  ST.  JOHN'S  COLLEGES.        315 

(or  New)  Court  is  a  modern  addition,  built  in  the 
present  century  at  a  cost  of  $200,000.  From  this 
the  College  Walks  open  on  the  western  side,  the 
view  from  the  gateway  looking  down  the  long 
avenue  of  lime  trees  being  strikingly  beautiful. 
The  Master's  Court  is  the  fourth  quadrangle. 

Adjoining  Trinity  is  its  rival,  St.  John's  College, 
also  consisting  of  four  courts,  though  one  of  them  is 
of  modern  construction  and  on  the  opposite  bank  of 
the  river.  This  college  was  founded  by  the  countess 
Margaret  Beaufort,  mother  of  Henry  VII.,  and  was 
opened  in  1516,  having  been  for  several  centuries 
previously  the  Hospital  of  St.  John,  established  on 
this  site  in  the  twelfth  century.  It  is  generally  re- 
garded from  this  circumstance  as  being  the  oldest 
college  at  Cambridge.  The  gateway  is  a  tower  of 
mingled  brick  and  stone,  and  is  one  of  the  earliest 
structures  of  the  college.  Entering  it,  on  the  oppo- 
site side  of  the  court  is  seen  the  New  Chapel,  a 
grand  edifice  one  hundred  and  seventy-two  feet  long 
and  sixty-three  feet  high,  with  a  surmounting  tower 
whose  interior  space  is  open  and  rises  eighty-four 
feet  above  the  pavement.  The  roof  and  the  win- 
dows are  richly  colored,  and  variegated  marbles 
have  been  employed  in  the  interior  decoration.  The 
eastern  end  is  a  five-sided  apse ;  the  ceiling  is 
vaulted  in  oak,  while  the  chapel  has  a  magnificent 
screen.  Between  the  first  and  second  courts  is  the 
hall,  recently  enlarged  and  decorated,  and  the  library, 


316   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRirTIVE. 

containing  35,000  volumes,  is  on  the  northern  side 
of  the  third  court.  It  is  a  picturesque  room  of  James 
I.'s  time,  with  a  timbered  roof,  whitened  walls,  and 
carved  oaken  bookcases  black  with  age.  The 
second  court  is  of  earlier  date,  and  is  a  fine  specimen 
of  sixteenth-century  brickwork.  On  the  southern 
side  is  an  octagonal  turret,  at  the  top  of  which  is 
the  queer  little  room  occupied  by  Dr.  Wood,  wliose 
statue  is  in  the  chapel.  When  he  first  came  to  col- 
lege from  his  humble  home  in  the  north  of  England 
lie  was  so  poor  that  he  studied  by  the  light  of  the 
staircase  candle,  and  wrapped  his  feet  in  wisps  of 
hay  in  winter  to  save  the  cost  of  a  fire.  He  became 
the  Senior  Wrangler,  and  in  due  course  a  Fellow, 
and  ultimately  master  of  the  college.  To  this  was 
added  the  deanery  of  Ely.  Dying,  he  bequeathed 
his  moderate  fortune  for  the  aid  of  poor  students  and 
the  benefit  of  his  college.  Of  the  third  court  the 
cloister  on  the  western  side  fronts  the  river.  The 
New  Court,  across  the  Cam,  is  a  handsome  structure, 
faced  with  stone  and  surmounted  by  a  tower.  A 
covered  Gothic  bridge,  Avhich  the  students  have 
named  the  '^  Bridge  of  Sighs,"  leads  to  it  over  the 
river  from  the  older  parts  of  the  college.  In  the 
garden  along  the  river,  known  as  the  Wilderness, 
Prior  the  poet  is  said  to  have  laid  out  the  Avalks. 
Here  among  the  students  who  have  taken  recreation 
have  been  Wordsworth  and  Ilerschel,  Wilberforce 
and  Stillingfleet,   and   the   graduates   include  Lord 


3Bri&tK  of  St{jb9, 
St.  5obn'a  College,  CambriOae. 


CAIUS  AND  CLARE  COLLEGES.  317 

Burleigh,  Ben  Jonson,  Lord  Strafford,  Lord  Falk- 
land, Matthew  Prior,  Bentley,  Darwin,  Rowland 
Hill,  Home  Tooke,  and  Lord  Palmerston. 

CAIUS  AND  CLARE  COLLEGES. 

It  took  two  founders  to  establish  Gonville  and 
Caius  College,  and  both  their  names  are  preserved 
in  the  title,  though  it  is  best  known  as  Caius  (pro- 
nounced Keys)  College.  Edward  de  Gonville  was 
the  founder  in  1348,  and  the  erudite  Dr.  Caius, 
physician  to  Queen  Mary,  refounded  the  college  in 
1558.  Its  buildings  were  ancient,  but  they  have  been 
greatly  changed  in  the  present  century,  so  that  the 
chief  entrance  is  now  beneath  a  lofty  tower,  part  of 
the  New  Court  and  fronting  the  Senate  House.  This 
New  Court  is  a  fine  building,  ornamented  with  busts 
of  the  most  conspicuous  men  of  Caius.  Beyond  is 
the  smaller  or  Caius  Court  of  this  college,  con- 
structed in  the  sixteenth  century.  The  "  Gate  of 
Virtue  and  Wisdom "  connects  them,  and  is  sur- 
mounted by  an  odd  turret.  On  the  other  side  is  the 
"  Gate  of  Honor,"  a  good  specimen  of  the  Renais- 
sance. The  "  Gate  of  Humility  "  was  removed  in 
rebuilding  the  New  Court.  Thus  did  this  college 
give  its  students  veritable  sermons  in  stones.  The 
founders  of  Caius  were  physicians,  and  among  its 
most  eminent  members  Avere  Hervey  and  Jeremy 
Taylor,  Sir  Thomas  Gresham  and  Lord  Chancellor 
Thurlow.     Adjoining  Caius  is  Trinity  Hall^  as  note4 


318    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVK 

for  the  law  as  its  neighbor  is  for  medicine,  having 
Iiad  on  its  rolls  Lord  Howard,  Lord  Chesterfield, 
Lord  Lytton,  Chief  Justice  Cockburn,  Sterling,  and 
Stephen :  and  immediately  to  the  south  is  a  group 
of  university  buildings.  Among  these  is  the  Senate 
House,  opened  in  1730,  where  the  university  de- 
grees are  conferred.  It  has  a  fine  interior,  especi- 
ally the  ceiling,  and  among  the  statues  is  an  impres- 
sive one  of  the  younger  Pitt.  The  most  exciting 
scene  in  the  Senate  House  is  when  the  result  of  the 
mathematical  examination  is  announced.  This  for  a 
long  time  was  almost  the  only  path  to  distinction  at 
Cambridge.  When  all  are  assembled  upon  a  certain 
Friday  morning  in  January,  one  of  the  examiners 
stands  up  in  the  centre  of  the  western  gallery  and 
just  as  the  clock  strikes  nine  proclaims  to  the  crowd 
the  name  of  the  "  Senior  Wrangler,"  or  first  student 
of  the  year,  with  a  result  of  deafening  cheers ;  then 
the  remainder  of  the  list  is  read.  On  the  following 
day  the  recipients  of  degrees  and  visitors  sit  on  the 
lower  benches,  and  the  undergraduates  cram  the 
galleries.  Then  with  much  pomp  the  favored  stu- 
dent is  conducted  to  the  vice-chancellor  to  receive 
alone  his  first  degree.  The  University  Library  is 
near  by,  and,  as  it  gets  a  copy  of  every  book  entered 
for  English  copyright,  it  has  become  a  large  one,  with 
500,000  volumes.  Some  of  the  manuscripts  it  con- 
tains are  very  valuable,  particularly  the  Codex  Beza^ 
a  manuscript  of  the  Gospels  given  in  1581  by  Beza, 


CAIUS  AND  CLARE  COLLEGES.  319 

a  Persian  manuscript  of  1388,  and  a  copy  on  vellum 
of  WyclifFe's  Bible. 

Adjoining  Trinity  Hall  is  the  beautiful  court  of 
Clare  College,  dating  from  the  time  of  the  Civil 
Wars,  when  it  replaced  older  structures.  Its  exte- 
rior is  most  attractive  to  visitors,  exhibiting  the 
pleasing  architecture  of  the  sixteenth  century.  The 
river-front  is  much  admired,  while  the  gateway  is 
marked  by  quaint  lantern-like  windows.  In  the 
library  is  one  of  the  rare  Bibles  of  Sixtus  V.,  and  in 
the  Master's  Lodge  is  kept  the  poison-cup  of  Clare, 
which  is  both  curious  and  beautiful.  The  gentle 
lady's  mournful  fate  has  been  told  by  Scott  in  Mar- 
mion.  Tillotson  and  other  famous  divines  were  stu- 
dents at  Clare,  and  the  college  also  claims  Chaucer, 
but  this  is  doubtful,  though  the  college  figures  in 
his  story  of  the  "  Miller  of  Trumpington,"  and  adjuts 
upon  Trumpington  Street.  Clare  is  the  second 
oldest  college  in  Cambridge,  having  been  founded  in 
1326.  Upon  the  opposite  side  of  this  street  is  Great 
St.  Clary's  Church,  the  university  church,  an  attractive 
building  of  Perpendicular  architecture  dating  from 
the  fifteenth  century,  and  having  fine  chimes  of  bells. 
Here  the  vice-chancellor  listens  to  a  sermon  every 
Sunday  afternoon  in  term-time.  Formerly,  on  these 
occasions,  the  "  heads  and  doctors  "  of  the  university 
sat  in  an  enclosed  gallery  built  like  a  sort  of  gigantic 
opera-box,  and  profanely  called  the  "  Golgotha."  A 
huge  pulpit  faced  them   on    the    other  end  of  the 


320   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE 

cliurch,  and  the  centre  formed  a  sort  of  pit.  Motlem 
improvements  have,  however,  swept  this  away,  re- 
})lacing  it  with  ordinary  pews. 

king's,  corpus  christi,  and  queens'  colleges. 

Trumpington  Street  broadens  into  the  King's 
Parade,  and  here,  entered  through  a  modern  but- 
tressed screen  pierced  with  openings  filled  with 
tracery,  is  King's  College.  It  was  founded  by 
Henry  YI.,  in  1440,  and  in  immediate  connection 
with  the  school  at  Eton,  from  which  the  more  ad- 
vanced scholars  were  to  be  transferred.  Tlie  great 
King's  Chapel,  which  gives  an  idea  of  the  grand 
scale  on  which  this  college  was  to  be  constructed,  is 
the  special  boast  of  Cambridge.  It  is  two  hundred 
and  ninety  feet  long,  eighty-five  feet  wide,  and 
seventy-eight  feet  high,  witli  a  marvellously  fretted 
roof  of  stone,  and  large  windows  at  the  sides  and 
ends  filled  with  beautiful  stained  glass.  This  is  the 
most  imposing  of  all  the  buildings  in  Cambridge, 
and  occupies  the  entire  northern  side  of  the  college 
court.  Its  fine  doorway  is  regarded  as  the  most 
pleasing  part  of  the  exterior  design.  The  stained- 
glass  windows  are  divided  into  an  upper  and  a  lower 
series  of  pictures.  The  lower  is  a  continuous  chain 
of  gospel  history,  while  the  upper  exhibits  the  Old- 
Testament  types  of  the  subjects  represented  below. 
Although  designed  on  such  a  magnificent  scale,  the 
Wars  of  the  Koses  interfered  with  the  completion  of 


KING'S,  CORPUS  CHRISTI,  QUEENS'   COLLEGES.   321 

King's  College,  and  even  the  chapel  was  not  finished 
until  Henry  VIII.'s  reign.  The  other  college  build- 
ings arc  modern  and  without  particular  attraction. 
Among  the  students  at  King's  have  been  Archbishop 
Sumner,  Sir  William  Temple,  Robert  Walpole, 
Horace  Walpole,  and  Lord  Stratford  de  Redcliffe. 

Adjoining  King's  is  Corpus  Christi  College,  estab- 
lished in  1352,  the  buildings  being  almost  entirely 
modern.  Of  the  ancient  structure  one  small  court 
alone  remains,  a  picturesque  steep-roofed  building 
almost  smothered  in  ivy.  Corpus  Christi  Hall  is 
said  to  have  been  partly  designed  after  the  great 
hall  of  Kenilworth.  In  its  library  are  the  famous 
manuscripts  rescued  from  the  suppressed  monas- 
teries, there  being  four  hundred  interesting  and 
curious  volumes  of  these  precious  documents,  which 
are  most  jealously  guarded.  Samuel  Wesley  was  a 
student  here.  Opposite  Corpus  is  St.  Catharine's 
College,  founded  in  1475,  with  a  comparatively 
plain  hall  and  chapel.  Behind  this  is  Queens'  Col- 
lege, an  antique  structure,  though  not  a  very  ancient 
foundation.  Its  entrance-tower  is  of  brick,  and  a 
quaint  low  cloister  runs  around  the  interior  court. 
Within  is  Erasmus's  Court,  where  are  pointed  out 
the  rooms  once  occupied  by  that  great  scholar. 
Across  the  river  a  wooden  bridge  leads  to  a  terrace 
by  the  water-side  with  an  overhanging  border  of 
elms,  and  known  as  Erasmus's  Walk.  This  college 
was  founded  by  the  rival  queens,  Margaret  of  Anjou 

Vol.  L— 21 


322    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

and  Elizabeth  Widvile,  and  though  it  is  very  proud 
of  having  had  the  great  scholar  of  the  Reforma- 
tion within  its  halls,  he  does  not  seem  to  have 
entirely  reciprocated  the  pleasure  ;  for  he  complains 
in  a  letter  to  a  friend  that  while  there  "  he  was 
blockaded  with  the  plague,  beset  with  thieves,  and 
drugged  with  bad  wine."  Returning  to  Trumping- 
ton  Street,  we  tind  on  the  western  side  the  Uni- 
versity Printing  Press,  named  from  the  younger 
statesman  the  Pitt  Press.  'He  represented  the  uni- 
versity in  Parliament,  and  the  lofty  square  and 
pinnacled  tower  of  this  printing-office  is  one  of  the 
most  conspicuous  objects  in  Cambridge.  Yet  even 
this  structure  has  its  contrasts,  for  the  "Cantabs" 
consider  that  its  architecture  is  as  bad  as  its  typog- 
raphy is  good,  and  have  nicknamed  it  the  "  Fresh- 
men's Church." 

OTHER  CAMBRIDGE  COLLEGES. 

Pembroke  College,  founded  in  1347  by  the 
Countess  of  Pembroke,  near  the  Pitt  Press,  has  a 
chapel  designed  by  Christopher  Wren  and  recently 
enlarged.  This  was  the  college  of  Spenser  and 
Gray,  the  latter  having  migrated  from  the  neigh- 
boring Peterhouse  because  of  the  practical  jokes  the 
students  played  upon  him.  It  was  also  Pitt's  col- 
lege, and  Ridley  studied  here.  Opposite  Pembroke 
is  Peterhouse,  or  St.  Peter's  College,  the  most  an- 
cient foundation  in  Cambridge,  established  by  Hugh 


OTHER  CAMBRIDGE  COLLEGES.  323 

de  Balshain,  Bishop  of  Ely,  in  1284.  Its  most 
fcinious  student  was  Gray,  and  his  upper  room  is 
shown,  having  iron  bars  at  the  window,  said  to  have 
been  placed  there  by  Gray  to  fasten  a  rope-ladder 
in  case  of  fire.  Beyond  Peterhouse  is  the  Fitz- 
william  Museum,  a  most  successful  reproduction  of 
classic  architecture,  built  and  maintained  bv  a 
legacy  of  $500,000  left  by  Viscount  Fitzwilliam  in 
181G.  It  contains  an  excellent  art  and  literary  col- 
lection, which  was  begun  by  the  viscount.  This  is 
regarded  as  probably  the  finest  classical  building 
constructed  in  the  present  century  in  England.  A 
short  distance  beyond,  at  the  end  of  a  water-course, 
is  an  attractive  hexagonal  structure  with  niched  re- 
cesses and  ornamental  capstones.  This  is  Hobson's 
Conduit,  erected  in  1614  by  Thomas  Hobson.  This 
benefactor  of  Cambridge  was  a  livery-stable  keeper 
and  carrier  between  London  and  the  university,  and 
his  unswerving  rule  of  strict  rotation  in  letting  out 
his  horses  is  said  to  have  been  the  origin  of  the 
phrase  "  Hobson's  Choice."  Downing  College, 
erected  in  1807,  is  an  unobtrusive  structure  in  a 
fine  park ;  and  near  by  is  Emmanuel  College,  bulk 
on  the  site  of  a  Dominican  convent  and  designed  by 
Wren.  It  was  founded  by  Sir  Walter  Mildmay,  the 
Puritan,  in  1584,  who  on  going  to  court  was  taxed  by 
Queen  Mary  with  having  erected  a  Puritan  college. 
"  No,  madam,"  he  replied,  "  far  be  it  from  me  to 
countenance  anything  contrary   to  your  established 


324    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

laws,  but  I  have  set  an  acorn,  which  when  it  becomes 
an  oak  God  alone  knows  what  will  be  the  fruit  thereof." 
8ir  William  Temple  was  educated  at  Emmanuel,  also 
several  of  the  Pilgrim  Fathers,  and  John  Harvard, 
the  founder  of  Harvard  University.  Christ's  Col- 
lege is  chiefly  interesting  from  is  associations  with 
Milton,  whose  rooms  are  still  pointed  out,  while  a 
mulberry  tree  that  he  planted  in  1632  is  preserved 
in  the  garden.  Latimer  and  Paley,  with  a  host  of 
other  divines,  Sir  Philip  Sidney,  and  Leland  the 
antiquary,  were  students  here.  This  college  was 
founded  by  Queen  3Iargaret,  mother  of  Henry  VII., 
in  1500,  and  some  beautiful  silver  plate,  her  gift  to 
the  Fellows,  is  still  preserved.  At  Sidney-Sussex 
College,  founded  in  159G  by  the  Countess  of  Sussex, 
daughter  of  Sir  William  Sidney,  Cromwell  was  a 
Fellow  in  IGIG,  and  his  crayon  portrait  hangs  in 
the  dining-hall.  Owing  to  want  of  means,  he  left 
without  taking  a  degree.  An  oriel  window  i)roject- 
iug  over  the  street  is  said  to  mark  his  chamber. 
Uj)on  Bridge  Street  is  the  Kound  Church,  or  St. 
Sej)ulchre's  Church,  obtaining  its  name  from  its 
circular  Norman  nave,  dating  from  1101,  being 
the  oldest  of  tlie  four  ''  Temple  churches "  still 
remaining  in  England.  Across  the  Cam  stands 
Magdalene  College  (pronounced  ^laudlin),  founded 
in  1542  by  Baron  Thomas  Audley  of  AValden. 
Within  the  building  behind  it  are  the  literary  col- 
lections of  Samuel  Pepys,  who  was  secretary  to  the 


OTHER  CAMBRIDGE  COLLEGES.  325 

Admiralty  in  tlie  reigns  of  Charles  II.  and  James 
II.,  together  with  the  manuscript  of  his  famous 
diary,  a  book  of  marvellous  gossip,  recording  the 
peccadilloes  of  its  author,  the  jealousy  of  his  wife, 
and  the  corruptions  of  the  court.  He  was  educated 
at  IMagdalene,  as  also  was  Archbishop  Cranmer. 

Jesus  Lane  leads  out  of  Bridge  Street  to  Jesus 
College,  founded  by  Bishop  Alcock  in  1497,  re- 
motely placed  on  the  river-bank  within  spacious 
grounds,  and  of  which  the  chief  building  of  interest 
is  the  chapel,  a  fine  Gothic  structure.  This  college 
is  upon  the  site  of  a  Benedictine  nunnery  founded 
in  1133,  and  is  entered  by  a  lofty  brick  gate-tower 
which  is  niuch  admired,  and  was  constructed  soon 
after  the  foundation  of  the  college  in  1497  by  the 
Bishop  of  Ely,  whose  successors  until  this  day  retain 
the  gift  of  the  mastership.  Sterne  and  Coleridge 
were  graduates  of  Jesus.  The  most  modern  of  the 
Cambridge  colleges  is  Selwyn,  founded  in  1882, 
and  designed,  like  Keble  College  at  Oxford,  to  pro- 
vide an  economical  university  education  for  members 
of  the  Church  of  England.  There  are  two  founda- 
tions for  women  at  Cambridge.  One  of  these  is 
near  Selwyn,  and  was  founded  in  1875,  Ncwnhara 
College,  accommodating  one  hundred  students.  The 
other,  a  short  distance  north-east  of  the  town,  is  Girton 
College,  established  in  1869  for  the  higher  educa- 
tion of  women.  The  students  of  Ncwnham  and 
Girton  are  admitted  to  the  University  Previous  Ex- 


32G    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIITIVK 

amination  and  Triposes,  but  do  not  receive  degrees. 
Cavendish  College  is  a  Non-conformist  training- 
school,  Rcdley  Hall  is  a  theological  college  for 
graduates,  and  Westminster  College,  just  completed, 
is  a  large  new  establishment  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church. 

From  Jesus  Lane  a  path  leads  down  to  the  boat- 
houses  on  the  river-bank,  where  each  college  has  a 
boat-club  wearing  a  distinctive  dress  The  race- 
course is  at  the  Long  Reach  or  Lower  Kiver,  just 
below  the  town,  separated  from  the  Upper  Kiver  by 
locks.  Of  the  ancient  Cambridge  Castle,  built  by 
the  Conqueror  in  1068,  nothing  remains  but  the 
mound  upon  Castle  Hill,  where  the  county  courts 
are  now  located.  Cambridge,  however,  has  little 
besides  its  university  buildings  to  attract  attention. 
Two  miles  away  is  Trumpington,  near  which  is  the 
site  of  the  mill  told  of  in  Chaucer's  Canterbury  tale 
of  the  "  Miller  of  Trumpington.''  The  place  is  now 
used  for  gates  to  admit  the  river-water  into  Byron's 
Pool,  which  is  so  called  because  the  poet  frecpiently 
bathed  in  it  when  he  was  an  undergraduate  of 
Trinity  College. 

THE    FEXLAXD. 

The  river  Cam  below  Cambridge  flows  though 
that  country  of  reclaimed  marshland  which  ulti- 
mately ends  in  the  Wash,  between  Norfolk  and  Lin- 
colnshire,   and    is   known    as   the    Fenland.       This 


THE  FEXLAND.  327 

"Great  Level  of  the  Fens"  has  been  drained  and 
reclaimed  by  the  labors  of  successive  generations  of 
engineers,  and  contains  about  six  hundred  and 
eighty  thousand  acres  of  the  richest  lands  in  Eng- 
land, being  as  much  the  product  of  engineering  skill 
as  Holland  itself.  Not  many  centuries  ago  this  vast 
surface,  covering  two  thousand  square  miles,  was 
entirely  abandoned  to  the  waters,  forming  an  im- 
mense estuary  of  the  Wash,  into  which  various 
rivers  discharge  the  rainfall  of  Central  England.  In 
winter  it  was  an  inland  sea  and  in  summer  a  noxious 
swamp.  The  more  elevated  parts  were  overgrown 
with  tall  reeds  that  in  the  distance  looked  like  fields 
of  waving  corn,  and  immense  flocks  of  wild-fowl 
haunted  them.  Into  this  dismal  swamp  the  rivers 
brought  down  their  freshets,  the  waters  mingling 
and  winding  by  devious  channels  before  they 
reached  the  sea.  The  silt  with  which  they  were 
laden  became  deposited  in  the  basin  of  the  Fens, 
and  thus  the  river-beds  were  choked  up,  compelling 
the  intercepted  waters  to  force  new  channels  through 
the  ooze ;  hence  there  are  numerous  abandoned  beds 
of  old  rivers  still  traceable  amid  the  level  of  the 
Fens.  This  region  now  is  drained  and  dyked,  but  in 
earlier  times  it  was  a  wilderness  of  shallow  waters 
and  reedy  islets,  with  frequent  "islands"  of  firmer 
and  more  elevated  ground.  These  were  availed  of 
for  the  monasteries  of  the  Fenland — Ely,  Peter- 
borough,  Crowland,   and  others,    all   established   by 


328    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

the  Benedictines.  The  abbey  of  Bury  St.  Edmunds, 
although  situated  some  distance  from  the  marsliland, 
may  also  be  classed  among  the  religious  houses  of 
the  Fens.  This  abbey,  which  is  a  short  distance 
cast  of  Cambridge,  was  built  in  the  eleventh  century 
as  the  shrine  of  St.  Edmund,  King  of  East  Anglia, 
who  was  killed  by  the  Danes  about  the  year  870. 
It  soon  became  one  of  the  wealthiest  English  monas- 
teries, and  Avas  the  chief  religious  centre  of  that 
section,  St.  Edmund's  shrine  long  being  a  Mecca 
for  vast  numbers  of  P^nglish  pilgrims.  Only  ruins 
remain,  the  chief  being  the  abbey-gate,  now  the 
property  of  the  Marquis  of  Bristol,  and  the  Norman 
tower  and  church,  which  have  recently  been  re- 
stored. In  the  suburbs  of  Bury  is  Ilengrave  Hall, 
one  of  the  most  interesting  Tudor  mansions  remain- 
ing in  the  kingdom.  Originally,  it  was  three  times 
its  present  size,  and  was  built  by  Sir  Thomas  Kytson 
about  1525.  Its  gate-house  is  rich  in  details,  and 
the  many  windows  and  projections  of  the  southern 
front  group  picturesquely. 

Following  the  Cam  northward  from  Cambridge 
through  the  marshland,  we  come  to  the  "  Isle  of 
Ely,"  the  great  "  fortress  of  the  Fens,"  formerly  sur- 
rounded by  Avater,  and  standing  upon  its  highest 
ground  is  the  great  cathedral  of  Ely.  This  ancient 
island  in  the  marshland  is  said  to  have  got  its  name 
from  the  eels  in  the  adjacent  waters.  It  is  memor- 
able   as    having   been    the    last   stronghold    of    the 


THE  FENLAND.  329 

Saxons,  who  maintained  themselves  against  the  Nor- 
man Conquest  by  holding  their  island-fortress  from 
1066  to  1071,  under  the  leadership  of  Hereward, 
who  has  been  mournfully  described  as  the  "last  of 
the  English."  Its  final  capture  was  only  made  by 
King  William  the  Conqueror  after  prodigious  labor 
and  heavy  loss.  He  subsequently  regarded  it  as  one 
of  his  most  important  strongholds.  Here  St.  Ethel- 
dreda  founded  a  monastery  in  the  seventh  century, 
which  ultimately  became  a  cathedral,  Ely  having 
been  given  a  bishop  in  1109.  The  present  buildings 
date  all  the  way  from  the  eleventh  to  the  sixteenth 
century,  so  that  they  give  specimens  of  all  Gothic 
styles.  The  cathedral  is  five  hundred  and  twenty 
feet  long,  and  from  the  summit  of  its  Avestern  tower 
can  be  gained  a  fine  view  of  the  spreading  fens  and 
lowlands  of  Cambridgeshire,  amid  which  stands  the 
Isle  of  Ely.  One  of  the  finest  views  of  this  tower 
is  that  obtained  from  the  road  leading  to  Ely  Close. 
The  lofty  castellated  western  tower,  and  indeed  the 
whole  cathedral,  are  landmarks  for  the  entire  country 
round,  and  from  the  rising  ground  at  Cambridge, 
fully  twenty  miles  to  the  southward,  they  can  be  seen 
standing  out  against  the  sky.  From  the  dykes  and 
fields  and  meadows  that  have  replaced  the  mai'shes 
along  the  Cam  and  Ouse  the  huge  tower  can  be  seen 
looming  up  in  stately  grandeur.  It  is  almost  'the 
sole  attraction  of  the  sleepy  little  country  town. 
The  great  feature  of  this  massive  cathedral  is  the 


330    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

wonderful  central  octagon,  with  its  domelike  roof 
crowned  by  a  lofty  lantern,  which  is  said  to  be  the 
only  Gothic  dome  of  its  kind  in  existence  in  Eng- 
land or  France.  We  are  told  that  the  original  ca- 
thedral had  a  central  tower,  which  for  some  time 
showed  signs  of  instability,  until  on  one  winter's 
morning  in  1321  it  came  down  with  an  earthquake 
crash  and  severed  the  cathedral  into  four  arms.  In 
reconstructing  it,  to  ensure  security  the  entire 
breadth  of  tlie  church  was  taken  as  a  base  for  the 
octagon,  so  that  it  was  more  than  three  times  as 
large  as  the  original  square  tower.  Magnificent 
windows  are  inserted  in  the  exterior  faces  of  the 
octagon,  and  the  entire  cathedral  has  been  restored. 
It  was  to  Bishop  Cox,  who  then  presided  over  the 
see  of  Ely,  that  Queen  Elizabeth,  when  he  objected 
to  the  alienation  of  certain  church  property,  wrote 
her  famous  letter : 

^'  Proii)  Puklate  :  You  know  what  you  were 
before  I  made  you  what  you  are ;  if  you  do  not  im- 
mediately comply  with  my  request,  by  God,  I  will 
unfrock  you." 

"Elizabeth  R." 

The  bishop,  it  is  almost  unnecessary  to  say,  sur- 
rendered. Tiie  town  contains  little  of  interest  be- 
yond some  quaint  old  houses. 


PETERBOROUGH  CATHEDRAL.  331 

PETERBOROUGH    CATHEDRAL. 

North-westward  of  Ely,  and  just  on  the  border 
of  the  Fenland,  Penda,  a  thane  of  Mercia  who  had 
acquired  great  wealth,  founded  Medeshamstede,  near 
the  bank  of  the  Neue,  the  first  and  most  powerful  of 
the  great  Benedictine  abbeys  of  this  region,  in  the 
year  656.  Around  this  celebrated  religious  house 
has  grown  the  town  of  Peterborougli,  now  one  of  the 
chief  railway-junctions  in  ^Midland  England.  The 
remains  of  the  monastic  buildings,  and  especially  of 
the  cathedral,  are  magnificent,  the  great  feature  of 
the  latter  being  its  western  front,  which  was  com- 
pleted in  the  thirteenth  century,  and  has  three  great 
open  arches,  making  probably  the  finest  church 
portico  in  Europe.  On  the  left  of  the  cathedral  is 
the  chancel  of  Becket's  Chapel,  now  a  grammar 
school,  while  on  the  right  is  the  ancient  gateway  of 
the  abbot's  lodgings,  which  has  become  the  entrance 
to  the  bishop's  palace.  The  main  part  of  the  ca- 
thedral is  Norman,  though  portions  are  Early  Eng- 
lish. It  is  built  in  the  form  of  a  cross,  with  a  smaller 
transept  at  the  western  end,  while  the  choir  ter- 
minates in  an  apse,  and  a  central  tower  rises  from 
four  supporting  arches.  This  is  the  third  church  that 
has  been  built  on  the  site.  Penda's  first  structure 
Avas  destroyed  during  the  Danish  invasion  of  870-3 ; 
the  second,  founded  a  century  afterwards,  was  burnt 
in  1116;  and  the  choir  of  the  third,  consecrated  in 


332    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

1140,  is  tlic  oldest  part  of  the  present  cathedral. 
The  nave  and  transepts  were  built  later  in  the  twelfth 
century.  A  complete  restoration  was  begun  in 
1897.  Within  the  cathedral,  to  the  north  of  the 
western  doorway,  is  a  portrait  of  old  Scarlett,  who 
died  in  1594,  Peterborough's  noted  sexton,  who 
buried  here  Queen  (Catharine  of  Aragon,  wife  of 
Henry  VIII.,  in  1548,  and  Mary  Queen  of  Scots, 
after  her  execution  in  1587.  The  grave  of  the 
former  is  in  the  north  choir-aisle,  and  a  slab  in  the 
corresponding  portion  of  the  south  choir-aisle  marks 
the  original  resting-place  of  Mary,  whose  remains 
were  taken  by  King  James  I.  to  Westminster 
Abbey.  In  1G43,  the  Puritans  destroyed  the  in- 
terior, including  both  monuments.  In  1895,  a  tab- 
let to  the  Scottish  queen  was  placed  near  her  former 
grave,  by  a  subscription  made  by  ladies  bearing  the 
Christian  name  of  Mary.  The  nave  has  an  ancient 
•wooden  roof  of  the  twelfth  century  carefully  pre- 
served and  painted  with  various  devices.  The  tran- 
sept arches  are  fine  specimens  of  Norman  work. 

CROWLAND   ABBEY. 

Farther  northward  in  the  Fenland,  and  over  the 
border  in  Lincolnshire,  was  the  Benedictine  abbey 
of  "  courteous  Crowland,"  though  its  remains  are 
now  scanty.  It  derives  its  name  from  the  "  Land  of 
Crows,"  which  in  this  part  of  the  Fenland,  is  drained 
by  the  Welland  Kiver  and  the  great  Bedford  Level. 


CROWLAND  ABBEY.  333 

On  one  of  the  many  islands  of  firmer  soil  abounding 
in  this  oozy  region  the  monks  constructed  their  mon- 
astery, but  had  little  space  for  cultivation,  and 
brought  their  food  from  remoter  possessions.  Now, 
Crowland  is  no  longer  an  island,  for  the  drainage  has 
made  fast  land  all  about,  and  the  ruins  have  attracted 
a  straggling  village.  Here  is  the  famous  '^  triangu- 
lar bridge,"  a  relic  of  the  abbey.  Three  streams 
met,  and  the  bridge  was  made  to  accommodate  the 
monks,  who,  from  whatever  direction  they  ap- 
proached, had  to  cross  one  of  them.  The  streams 
now  are  conveyed  underground,  but  the  bridge  re- 
mains like  a  stranded  monster  which  the  tide  has 
abandoned,  and  gives  the  children  a  play-place.  Its 
steep  half-arches,  meeting  in  the  centre,  are  climbed 
by  rough  steps.  The  dissolved  abbey  served  as  a 
quarry  for  the  village,  and  hence  on  this  strange 
bridge  and  on  all  the  houses  fragments  of  worked 
stone  and  of  sculpture  everywhere  appear.  It  was 
located  at  the  eastern  end  of  the  village,  where  its 
ruins  still  stand  as  a  guide  across  the  fens,  seen 
from  afar.  Most  of  it  is  in  complete  ruin,  but  the 
north  aisle  of  the  nave  has  been  sufficiently  pre- 
served to  serve  as  the  parish  church  of  Crowland ; 
round  about  the  church  and  the  ruins  extends  the 
village  graveyard.  Set  up  in  the  porch  beneath  the 
tower  is  a  memorial  of  William  Hill,  the  sexton, 
who  died  in  1792.  When  forty  years  old  he  was 
blinded  by  exposure  during  a  snowfall,  yet  he  lived 


334    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

for  twenty-five  years  afterwards,  able  to  find  his  way 
cverywiierc  and  to  know  every  grave  in  the  church- 
^ard.  Not  far  away  from  Peterborough  is  Ramsay, 
Avhcre  a  few  relics  remain  of  another  famous  Bene- 
dictine abbey,  long  since  gone  to  ruin.  In  the 
neighborhood  is  the  village  of  Stilton,  which  has 
achieved  undying  fame  by  giving  its  name  to  the 
well-known  cheese. 

In  the  earlier  days  of  Christianity  the  solitudes  in 
this  Fenland  had  peculiar  attractions  for  the  hermits 
■who  fled  from  the  world  to  embrace  an  ascetic  life. 
Thus  the  islands  each  gradually  got  its  hermit,  and 
the  great  monasteries  grew  up  by  degrees,  starting 
usually  in  the  cell  of  some  recluse.  Guthlac,  who 
lived  in  the  seventh  century,  was  of  the  royal 
House  of  ^lercia,  and  voluntarily  exiled  himself  in 
the  Fens,  ^i'his  region  was  then,  according  to  popu- 
lar belief,  the  haunt  of  myriads  of  evil  spirits,  who 
delighted  in  attacking  the  hermits.  They  assaulted 
Guthlac  in  hosts,  disturbed  him  by  strange  noises, 
once  carried  him  far  away  to  the  icy  regions  of  the 
North,  and  not  seldom  took  the  form  of  crows,  the 
easier  to  torment  him ;  but  his  unremitting  prayers 
and  penance  ultimately  put  them  to  flight,  and  the 
existence  of  his  cell  became  known  to  the  world. 
Ethelbald  fled  to  Guthlac  for  refuge,  and  the  hermit 
predicted  he  would  become  king,  which  in  time 
came  to  pass.  Guthlac  died  at  Crowland,  and  the 
grateful  king  built  a  stone  church  there.     The  build- 


NORWICH.  335 

ings  increased,  their  great  treasure  being  of  course 
the  tomb  of  the  hermit,  Avhich  became  a  source  of 
many  miracles.  The  Northmen  in  the  ninth  century 
plundered  and  destroyed  Crowland,  but  it  was  re- 
stored, and  in  Edward  the  Confessor's  time  was  one  of 
the  five  religious  houses  ruled  by  the  j)Owerful  abbot 
of  Peterborough.  It  became  the  shrine  of  Waltheof, 
the  Earl  of  Northampton  beheaded  for  opposing 
William  the  Conqueror,  and  Crowland  was  thus 
made  a  stronghold  of  English  feeling  against  the 
Normans,  like  the  other  monasteries  of  the  Fens. 
Its  fame  declined  somewhat  after  the  Conquest, 
though  its  hospitality  was  fully  maintained.  It  had 
little  subsequent  history.  The  abbey  was  garrisoned 
by  the  Royalists,  and  captured  by  Cromwell  in  1643, 
after  which  it  fell  into  ruin.  Such  has  been  the  fate 
of  almost  all  the  religious  houses  in  the  Fens,  the 
merits  of  which  the  people  in  the  olden  time  judged 
according  to  a  local  rhyme  which  yet  survives : 

"  Eamsay,  the  bounteous  of  gold  and  of  fee; 
Crowland,  as  courteous  as  courteous  naay  be  ; 
Spalding  the  rich,  and  Peterborougli  the  proud  ; 
Sawtrey,  by  the  way,  that  poor  abbaye. 
Gave  more  alms  in  one  day  than  all  they." 

NORWICH. 

Proceeding  eastward  out  of  the  Fenland  and 
among  the  hills  of  Norfolk,  the  little  river  Wensura 
is  found  to  have  cut  a  broad,  deep,  and  trench-like 


336    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

valley  into  the  chalk  and  gravel  plateau.  Upon  the 
elevated  bank  of  the  river  is  the  irregularly  pictu- 
resque town  of  Norwich,  with  the  castle-keep  rising 
above  the  undulating  mass  of  buildings,  and  the  ca- 
thedral and  its  noble  spire  overtopping  the  lower 
portion  of  the  city  on  the  right  hand.  Norwich  is 
an  ancient  town,  but  very  little  is  known  with  cer- 
tainty about  it  anterior  to  the  Danish  invasions. 
AVe  are  told  that  its  original  location  was  at  the 
more  southerly  castle  of  Caister,  whence  the  inhabi- 
tants migrated  to  the  present  site,  for — 

"  Caister  was  a  city  when  Norwich  was  none, 
And  Norwich  wa-s  built  of  Caister  stone." 

Canute  held  possession  of  Norwich  and  had  a  castle 
there,  but  the  present  castle  seems  to  date  from  the 
Norman  Conquest,  when  it  was  granted  to  Ralph  de 
Quader,  who  turned  traitor  to  the  king,  causing 
Norfolk  to  be  besieged,  captured,  and  greatly  in- 
jured. Then  the  castle  was  granted  to  Koger  Bigod. 
The  town  grew,  and  became  especially  prosperous 
from  the  settlement  there  of  numerous  Flemish 
weavers  in  the  fourteenth  century  and  of  Walloons 
in  Elizabeth's  reign.  It  managed  to  keep  pretty 
well  out  of  the  Civil  Wars,  but  a  local  historian 
says,  "  The  inhabitants  have  been  saved  from  stag- 
nation by  the  exceeding  bitterness  with  which  all 
party  and  local  political  questions  arc  discussed  and 
contested,  and  by  the  hearty  way  in  which  all  classes 


NORWICH.  337 

throw  themselves  into  all  really  patriotic  movements, 
when  their  party  feeling  occasionally  sleeps  for  a 
month  or  two."  Norwich  is  pre-eminently  a  town 
of  churches,  into  the  construction  of  which  flint 
enters  largely,  it  being  dressed  with  great  skill  into 
small  roughened  cubical  blocks.  The  East-Anglian 
"flush-work"  is  interesting  in  tlie  Norwich  build- 
ings, being  so  called  because  faced  flints  are  used  to 
fill  up  flush  the  interstices  of  the  freestone  pattern. 
The  great  attraction  of  Norwich  is  the  cathedral, 
which  stands  upon  a  low  peninsula  enclosed  by  a 
semicircular  sweep  of  the  river,  much  of  the  ground 
in  this  region  having  been  originally  a  swamp. 
The  cathedral  is  generally  approached  from  its 
western  side,  where  there  is  an  open  space  in  front 
of  the  Close  called  Tombland,  upon  which  two  gates 
open  from  it.  These  are  St.  Ethelbert's  and  the 
Erpingham  gates.  The  latter,  opposite  the  western 
front  of  the  cathedral,  is  named  for  its  builder,  "  old 
Sir  Thomas  Erpingham,"  whose  ''  good  white  head," 
Shakespeare  tells  us,  was  to  be  seen  on  the  field  of 
Agincourt.  The  cathedral  is  a  Norman  structure, 
cruciform  in  plan,  with  an  exceptionally  long  nave, 
an  apsidal  choir,  and  attached  chapels.  The  earliest 
parts  of  it  were  begun  by  Bishop  Herbert  de  Los- 
inga  in  1096,  and  when  partially  completed  five 
years  afterwards  it  was  handed  over  to  the  care  of 
the  Benedictine  monks.  Thirty  years  later  the  nave 
was  added,  but  the  cathedral  was  not  completed 
Vol.  I.— 22 


338   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

until  about  1150.  Twice  it  was  seriously  injured 
by  fire,  and  it  was  not  thoroughly  restored  for  a 
century,  when  in  1278  it  was  again  consecrated 
with  great  pomp,  in  the  presence  of  Edward  I.  and 
his  court,  on  Advent  Sunday.  The  spire,  which  is 
one  of  its  most  conspicuous  features,  was  added  by 
Bishop  Percy  in  the  fourteenth  century,  though, 
having  been  seriously  injured  by  lightning,  it  had  to 
be  replaced  afterwards.  At  the  same  time  the  build- 
ing was  greatly  altered,  its  roofs  raised  and  vaulted, 
and  repairs  went  on  until  1536.  Yet,  with  all  the 
changes  that  were  made  in  this  famous  cathedral,  no 
other  in  England  has  managed  to  preserve  its  origi- 
nal plan  so  nearly  undisturbed. 

Entering  the  nave  from  the  westward,  this  grand 
apartment  is  found  to  extend  two  hundred  and  fifty- 
two  feet,  and  to  the  intersection  of  the  transepts 
comprises  fourteen  bays,  three  of  them  being  in- 
cluded in  the  choir.  The  triforium  is  almost  as  lofty 
as  the  nave-arches,  and  the  solidity  of  these,  sur- 
mounted by  the  grandeur  of  the  upper  arcade,  gives 
a  magnificent  aspect  to  the  nave.  Above  is  the  fine 
vaulted  roof,  the  elaborately  carved  bosses  giving  a 
series  of  scenes  from  sacred  history  extending  from 
the  Creation  to  the  Last  Judgment.  Small  chapels 
were  originally  erected  against  the  organ-screen,  one 
of  them  being  dedicated  to  the  young  St.  William,  a 
Norfolk  saint  who  in  the  twelfth  century  was  tor- 
tured and  crucified  by  some  Jews.     His  body,  clan- 


NORWICH.  339 

destinely  buried  in  a  wood,  was  found,  miracles 
were  wrought,  and  it  was  translated  to  the  cathedral. 
The  Jews  of  Norwich  were  tlien  attacked  and 
plundered,  and  these  outrages  were  renewed  a  century- 
later.  But  times  have  fortunately  changed  since 
then.  The  choir  extends  to  the  eastern  apse,  and  at 
the  back  of  the  altar  recent  alterations  have  exposed 
an  interesting  relic  in  a  fragment  of  the  original 
bishop's  throne,  an  elevated  chair  of  stone  placed  in 
the  middle  of  the  apse  and  looking  westward.  On 
either  side  are  apsidal  chapels.  Among  the  monu- 
ments is  that  to  Sir  William  Boleyn,  grandfather  to 
the  unfortunate  Anne  Boleyn.  He  lived  at  Blickling, 
about  thirteen  miles  from  Xorwich,  where  Anne  is 
believed  to  have  been  born.  Several  bishops  also 
lie  in  the  cathedral,  and  among  the  later  tombs  is 
tljat  of  Dr.  Moore,  who  died  in  1779,  and  whose 
periwigged  head  is  in  grotesque  juxtaposition  with 
a  cherub  making  an  ugly  face  and  appearing  to  be 
drying  his  eyes  with  his  shirt.  The  spire  of  Norwich 
Cathedral  rises  two  hundred  and  eighty-seven  feet. 
Norwich  Castle  is  a  massive  block  of  masonry 
crowning  the  summit  of  a  mound.  Who  first  built 
it  is  unknown,  but  he  is  said  by  popular  tradition  to 
sit  buried  in  his  chair  and  full  armed  deep  down  in 
the  centre  of  this  mound,  and  "  ready  for  all  contin- 
gencies." But  the  castle  degenerated  into  a  jail, 
and  the  great  square  tower  or  keep,  ninety-five  feet 
square  and  seventy  feet  high,  is  the  only  part  of  the 


340   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

original  structure  roruaining.  It  has  been  refaced 
■with  new  stone,  and  the  interior  has  also  been  com- 
pletely changed.  After  five  centuries'  use  as  the 
county-jail,  in  1887  the  castle  was  converted  into  a 
museum,  and  now  contains  a  collection  of  birds  and 
fossils.  The  moat  is  planted  with  trees,  and  on  the 
outside  slope  the  cattle-market  is  held  every  Satur- 
day. Norwich  has  some  historical  structures.  In 
its  grammar-school  Nelson  was  a  scholar,  and  his 
statue  stands  on  the  green.  On  the  edge  of  Tomb- 
land  stands  the  house  of  Sir  John  Falstaff,  a  brave 
soldier  and  friend  of  literature,  whose  memory  is 
greatly  prized  in  Norfolk,  but  whose  name  has  been 
forgotten  by  many  in  the  shadow  of  Shakespeare's 
*^  Fat  Jack."  The  chief  centre  of  the  town,  how- 
ever, is  the  market-place,  on  the  slope  of  a  hill, 
where  modernized  buildings  have  replaced  some  of 
the  more  anti(iue  structures.  Here  stands  the  an- 
cient (jiuildhall,  which  in  1413  replaced  the  old  Tol- 
bootli,  where  the  market-duos  were  paid.  AVithin  is 
the  sword  surrendered  to  Nelson  by  Admiral  AVin- 
thuysen  at  the  battle  of  St.  Vincent,  and  by  him 
presented  to  the  chief  city  of  his  native  county  of 
Norfolk,  and  other  souvenirs  of  the  great  naval  hero. 
In  the  olden  time  the  glory  of  Norwich  was  the 
Duke  of  Norfolk's  palace,  but  it  was  destroyed  at 
the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century  by  the  then 
duke  in  a  fit  of  anger  because  the  mayor  would  not 
permit  his  troop  of  players  to  march  through  the 


NORWICH.  341 

town  with  trumpets  blowing.  Not  a  brick  of  it  now 
stands,  the  site  being  covered  with  small  houses. 
Norwich  was  formerly  famous  for  its  trade  in  wool- 
lens, '  a  colony  of  Flemish  Aveavers  in  the  twelfth 
century  introducing  them  at  the  neighboring  village^ 
of  Worstead,  whence  the  name.  Now,  the  coal- 
mines have  aided  the  spinning-jenny,  but  the 
worsteds  are  overshadowed  by  other  Norwich 
manufactures.  Colman's  starch  and  mustard-facto- 
ries cover  ten  acres,  and  Barnard's  ornamental  iron- 
work from  Norwich  is  world-renowned.  Norwich 
also  contains  an  enormous  brewery,  but  in  this  the 
city  is  not  singular,  for  what  is  a  Briton  without  his 
beer  ?  Thus  do  the  colliers  and  iron-workers,  the 
brewers  and  mustard-grinders  of  Norwich  make  its 
present  fame  and  fortune.  But  if  they  now  over- 
shadow possibly  the  ducal  and  aristocratic  memories 
of  the  ancient  town,  these  should  not  suffer,  for  does 
not  that  Avisest  of  English  humorists,  W.  S.  Gilbert, 

tell  us : 

"  Spurn  not  the  nobly  bom 
With  lovo  affected  ! 
Nor  treat  with  virtuous  scorn 

The  well-connected. 
High  rank  involves  no  shame ; 
We  boast  an  equal  claim 
With  him  of  humble  name, 
To  be  respected. 


LONDON  TO  SHEFFIELD  AND  YORK. 


VI. 
LONDON  TO  SHEFFIELD  AND  YORK. 

The  Flying  Scotsman — Grantham — The  Angel  Inn — Woolsthorpe 
— Sir  Isaac  Newton— Stamford — Burghley  House — Lord  Cecil 
— Tlie  George  Inn  —  Lincoln  —  Brayford  Pool  —  Tlie  Fosse 
Dyke  Canal — Lincohi  Catliedral — Ermine  Street — St.  Botolph's 
Town — Boston — Scrooby — Austerlield — Nottingham — Hosiery- 
knitting —  Southwell  —  The  Minster  —  The  Saraoen's  Head — 
Sherwood  Forest  —  Robin  Hood  —  The  Dukeries — Thoresby 
Hall — Ruffbrd  Abbey — Clumber  Park — OUerton — VVorksop — 
Welbeck  Abbey  — Its  Subterranean  Apartments  —  Newstead 
Abbey — Newark  —  Tlie  Talbot  Arms  —  The  Clinton  Arras— 
Kingston-npon-HuU — The  Humber — Trinity  House — William 
Wilberforce  —  Beverley — Leconfield  Castle  —  Sheffield  —  The 
Cutlers'  Company — Wakefield — The  Wars  of  the  Roses— The 
Six  Chimblics — Leeds — Woollen  Cloth — St.  John's  Cliurch — 
Teasels — Kirkstall  Abbey — Rumbald's  Moor — Ilkley — Bolton 
Abbey — The  Slrid — Bardon  Tower — The  Boy  of  Egremont — ■ 
Ripon  Minster  —  Fountains  Abbey  —  Studley  Royal  —  Anne 
Boleyn's  Seat  —  Fountains  Hall — Richmond  Castle  —  Ea.sby 
Abbey — Darlington  —  Stockton-on-Tees — York  —  Eboracum  — 
Towton  Field  —  Mai-ston  Moor — Micklcgate  Bar — The  Red 
Tower — York  Minster— Hotspur's  Tomb— York  Castle — Clif- 
ford's Tower — Robinson  Crusoe's  Birthplace. 

GRANTHAM. 

The  railway  running  from  London  to  EdinLiirgli, 
and  on  wliich  the  celebrated  fast  train  the  ''  Flying 
Scotsman  "  travels  between  the  two  ca})itals,  is  the 
longest  in  Britain.  Its  route  northward  from  the 
metropolis    to  the    Scottish    border,  with  occasional 

345 


346   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

digressions,  -will  furnish  many  places  of  interest. 
Tliis  famous  ''  Flying  Scotsman,"  speeding  from 
London,  makes  its  first  stop  after  an  unbroken  run 
of  one  hundred  and  five  miles  at  Grantham,  on  the 
river  Witham,  where  we  will  leave  the  train  and 
visit  the  quaint  old  Angel  Inn,  formerly  belonging  to 
the  Knights  Templar,  and  so  old  that  King  John  is 
said  to  have  held  court  in  it  in  1213.  It  was  here, 
too,  that  Kjng  Richard  III.  signed  the  death-warrant 
of  the  Duke  of  Buckingham.  Extensive  iron-works 
now  employ  the  people,  and  its  chief  memory  is  of 
Sir  Isaac  Newton,  who  was  born  in  1642  at  the 
village  of  "NVoolsthorpe,  seven  miles  westward.  His 
statue  adorns  the  park  on  St.  Peter's  Hill  in  Grant- 
ham, and  one  of  the  interesting  buildings  is  the 
quaint  old  grammar-school  founded  by  Bishop  Fox 
of  Winchester,  in  1528,  where  Newton  was  educated 
and  prepared  for  college.  The  local  tradition  is  that 
he  was  not  very  brilliant  during  his  career  here  as 
a  scholar,  a  circumstance  which  may  be  recorded,  if 
for  nothing  else,  at  least  for  the  encouragement  of 
some  of  the  backward  schoolboys  of  later  genera- 
tions. 

BURGH  LEY   HOUSE. 

On  the  banks  of  the  Welland  River  is  Stamford, 
in  Lincolnshire,  where  the  earliest  English  news- 
paper, the  Stamfurd  Mercury,  began  publication  in 
1712.  A  short  distance  south  of  the  town  is  located 
the    well-known    Burghh;y    House,   which    was    the 


BURGHLEY  HOUSE.  347 

home  of  Lord  Treasurer  Cecil,  wliose  history  is 
referred  to  ia  the  notice  of  Hatfield  House.  This 
mansion  is  now  the  seat  of  the  Marquis  of  Exeter, 
also  a  Cecil.  It  is  said  to  have  furnished  the  text 
for  Lord  Bacon's  "  Essay  on  Building,"  it  having 
been  completed  but  a  short  time  previously.  The 
plans  of  this  famous  house  are  still  preserved  in 
London.  It  is  a  parallelogram  built  around  an  open 
court,  with  a  lofty  square  tower  projecting  from  the 
western  front,  and  having  octangular  turrets  at  the 
angles.  The  northern  (which  is  the  main)  front  is 
divided  into  three  compartments,  and  bears  on  the 
parapet  1587  as  the  date  when  the  house  was 
finished.  Within  the  building  a  long  corridor,  com- 
manding a  view  of  the  inner  court,  leads  to  a  stone 
staircase  which  rises  to  the  top  of  the  structure  and 
is  peculiarly  decorated.  There  is  a  fine  chapel,  and 
in  an  adjoining  room  was  Giordano's  renowned 
painting  of  ''  Seneca  Dying  in  the  Bath,"  which 
Avas  eulogized  in  Prior's  poems,  he  having  seen  it 
there,  though  it  is  now  removed.  One  of  the  most 
interesting  pictures  in  the  gallery  is  that  of  Henry 
Cecil,  the  tenth  Earl  and  the  first  Marquis  of  Exeter, 
his  wife,  and  daughter.  Tennyson  has  woven  the 
romance  of  their  marriage  into  a  poem.  Cecil, 
before  coming  into  his  title,  was  living  in  seclusion  in 
Shropshire,  and  fell  in  love  with  a  farmer's  daughter. 
He  married  her  under  an  assumed  name,  and  only 
disclosed    his   true   rank   when,    succeeding   to    his 


348   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

uncle's  title  and  estates,  he  became  the  lord  of 
Burghley  and  took  her  home  to  Burgliley  House. 
Tennyson  tells  how  she  received  the  disclosure : 

"Thus  her  lieart  rejoices  greatly,  till  a  gateway  she  discerns 
Witli  armorial  bearings  stately,  and  Ijeneath  the  gate  she  turns; 
Sees  a  mansion  more  majestic  than  all  those  she  saw  before: 
Many  a  gallant  gay  domestic  bows  before  him  at  the  door, 
And  they  speak  in  gentle  nnirmur,  when  they  answer  to  his  call, 
"While  he  treads  with  footstep  firmer,  leading  on  from  hall  to 

hall. 
And,  wliile  now  she  wonders  blindly,    nor   the   meaning  can 

divine. 
Proudly  turns  he  round  and  kindly,  'AH  of  this  is  mine  and 

thine.' 
Here  he  lives  in  state  and  bounty,  Lord  of  Burgliley,  fair  and 

free, 
Not  a  lord  in  all  the  county  is  so  great  a  lord  as  he. 
All  at  once  the  color  Hushes  her  sweet  face  from  brow  to  chin : 
As  it  were  with  shame  she  blushes,  and  her  spirit  changed  within. 
Then  her  coimtcnance  all  over  pale  again  as  death  did  prove; 
J3ut  he  chi-sp'd  her  like  a  lover,  and  he  cheer"  d  her  soul  with 

love." 

The  building  has  man}'  attractive  apartments,  in- 
cluding a  ball-room  and  Queen  Elizabeth's  chamber, 
but  it  is  doubted  whether  the  maiden  queen  ever 
visited  it,  though  she  did  stay  at  Burgldey's  house 
in  Stamford,  and  here  made  the  celebrated  speech  to 
her  old  minister  in  which  she  said  that  liis  head  and 
her  purse  could  do  anything.  Burghley's  eldest 
son,  Thomas,  was  created  Earl  of  Exeter,  and  his 
descendants   are   now  in   possession   of  the   house. 


LINCOLN.  349 

His  younger  son,  Robert,  as  previously  related,  was 
made  Earl  of  Salisbury,  and  liis  descendants  hold 
Hatfield  House.  The  apartments  at  Burghley  are 
filled  with  historical  portraits.  The  grand  staircase 
on  the  southern  side  of  the  house  is  finer  than  the 
other,  but  is  not  so  full  of  character.  The  gardens 
of  Burghley  Avere  planted  by  "  Capability  Brown," 
the  same  who  laid  out  Kew.  He  imperiously  over- 
ruled King  George  HI.  in  the  gardening  at  Kew, 
and  when  he  died  the  king  is  said  to  have  exclaimed 
with  a  sigh  of  relief  to  the  under-gardener,  "  Brown 
is  dead ;  now  you  and  I  can  do  Avhat  we  please 
here."  Within  St.  Martin's  Church  in  Stamford  is 
the  canopied  tomb  of  the  lord  treasurer,  constructed 
of  alabaster,  and  bearing  his  effigy  clad  in  armor, 
with  the  crimson  robes  of  the  Garter ;  it  is  sur- 
rounded with  the  tombs  of  his  descendants.  It  was 
into  Stamford  that  Nicholas  Kickleby  rode  through 
the  snowstorm,  and  the  coach  stopped  at  the  George 
Inn,  which  was  a  popular  hostelrie  in  the  days  of 
Charles  IL,  as  it  still  remains. 

LINCOLN. 

Continuing  northward  down  the  river  Witham, 
we  come  to  a  point  where  tlie  stream  has  carved  in 
a  limestone-capped  plateau  a  magnificent  valley, 
which,  changing  its  course  to  the  eastward,  ulti- 
mately broadens  on  its  route  to  the  sea  into  a  wide 
tract  of  fenland.     Here,  upon  a  grand  site  overlook- 


3o0    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQl'E   AND   DESCRIPTIVE. 

ing  the  marshes  and  the  valley,  stands  the  city  of 
Lincohi,  with  its  cathedral  crowning  the  top  of  the 
liill,  while  the  town-buildings  spread  down  the  slope 
to  the  river-bank  at  IJrayford  Pool,  from  which  the 
"Witham  is  navigable  down  to  Boston,  near  the  coast, 
and  ultimately  discharges  into  the  Wash.  The 
Brayford  Pool  is  crowded  with  vessels  and  bordered 
by  warehouses,  and  it  receives  the  ancient  Fosse 
Dyke  Canal,  which  was  dug  by  the  Romans  to  con- 
nect the  Witham  with  the  more  inland  river  Trent. 
This  canal  has  been  modernized,  and  through  it  the 
city,  which  is  a  considerable  manufacturer  of  agri- 
cultural implements,  conducts  a  profitable  trade  Avith 
the  ^lidland  counties.  This  was  the  British  Lind- 
coit  and  afterwards  the  Roman  colony  of  Lindun), 
from  Avhich  the  present  name  of  Lincoln  is  derived, 
and  the  noble  cathedral  crowns  the  highest  ground, 
known  as  Steep  Hill.  William  the  Conqueror  was 
proud  of  Ijincoln,  Avhich  was  then  accounted  the 
fourth  city  in  Britain,  and  he  selected  it  as  the  site 
of  one  of  his  castles.  He  also  conferred  upon  Bishop 
Remigius  of  Fecamp  the  see  of  Dorchester,  who 
transferred  it  to  Lincoln  and  founded  in  1075  this 
celebrated  cathedral,  which,  with  its  three  noble 
towers  and  two  transepts,  is  one  of  the  finest  in 
England.  8t.  Paulinus  is  said  to  have  introduced 
Christianity  at  Lindcoit  in  the  seventh  century,  and 
to  have  built  a  church,  the  site  of  which  in  the  West- 
gate  Street  is  now  occupied  by  St.  Paul's  Church. 


Xmcolu  Carbc^ral. 


LI>'COLX.  351 

Approaching  the  grand  cathedral  from  the  river,  at 
the  foot  of  the  hill  is  encountered  the  Stonebow,  a 
Gothic  gateway  of  the  Tudor  age,  the  upper  part  of 
Avhicli  serves  as  the  guiklhaU.  The  centre  of  the 
Avcstern  front  is  the  oldest  part  of  Lincoln  Cathedral, 
and  the  gateway  facing  it,  and  forming  the  chief  en- 
trance to  the  Close,  is  the  Exchequer  Gate,  an  im- 
pressive structure  built  in  the  reign  of  Edward  III. 
The  cathedral  arcade  and  the  lower  parts  of  the 
two  western  towers  and  the  western  doorway  were 
built  in  the  twelfth  century.  Subsequently  an 
earthquake  shattered  the  cathedral,  and  in  the 
thirteenth  century  it  was  restored  and  extended  by 
Bishop  Hugh  of  Avelon,  not  being  finished  until 
1315.  The  massive  central  tower  is  supported  on 
four  grand  piers  composed  of  twenty-four  shafts, 
and  here  is  hung  the  celebrated  bell  of  Lincoln, 
"Great  Tom,"  which  was  recast  about  seventy 
years  ago,  and  weiglis  five  and  a  half  tons.  The 
transepts  have  splendid  rose  windows,  retaining  the 
original  stained  glass.  Lincoln's  shrine  was  that  of 
its  restoring  Bishop  St.  Hugh,  and  his  choir  is  sur- 
mounted by  remarkable  vaulting,  the  eastern  end  of 
the  church  being  extended  into  the  Angel  Choir,  a 
beautiful  specimen  of  Decorated  Gothic,  which  has 
been  described  as  "  one  of  the  loveliest  of  human 
works,"  built  in  1280  to  accommodate  the  enormous 
concourse  of  pilgrims  attracted  by  St.  Hugh's 
shrine,  which  stood  in  this  part  of  the  building.     In 


352    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

the  cathedral  is  the  tomb  of  Katherine  Swynford, 
third  wife  of  Jolin  of  Gaunt.  Adjoining  the  south- 
eastern transept  are  the  cloisters  and  cliapter-house. 
The  most  ingenious  piece  of  work  of  the  whole 
structure  is  the  "  stone  beam,"  a  bridge  with  a 
nearly  Hat  arch,  extending  between  the  two  western 
towers  over  the  nave,  composed  of  twenty-two 
stones,  each  eleven  inches  thick,  and  vibrating  sen- 
sibly when  stepped  upon.  There  are  two  ancient 
circular  windows  in  the  transepts,  which  contain  old- 
time  glass,  and  are  very  interesting.  That  in  the 
north  transept  dates  from  1225,  and  is  called  the 
"  Dean's  Eye,"  and  that  in  the  south  transept, 
dating  from  1325,  the  "  Bishop's  Eye."  In  the 
choir  is  a  shrine  for  "Little  St.  Hugh  of  Lincoln," 
a  child  alleged  to  have  been  crucitied  by  Jews, 
and  also  an  iinj)ressive  monument  for  Bishop  Words- 
Avorth,  who  died  in  1885.  There  is  a  grand  view 
from  the  towers  over  the  neighboring  country  and 
far  away  down  the  Witham  towards  the  sea.  The 
exterior  of  the  cathedral  is  one  of  the  finest  speci- 
mens of  architecture  in  the  kingdom,  its  porches, 
side-chapcls,  decorated  doorways,  sculptured  cap- 
itals, windows,  cloisters,  and  towers  admirably  illus- 
trating every  portion  of  the  history  of  English 
architecture.  Its  interior  length  is  four  hundred 
and  eighty  feet,  the  great  transept  two  hundred  and 
fifty  feet,  and  the  lesser  transept  one  hundred  and 
seventy  feet.     The  western  towers  arc  two  hundred 


LINCOLN.  353 

feet  high,  and  the  central  tower  two  hundred  and 
sixtj-two  feet,  while  the  width  of  the  cathedral's 
noble  western  front  is  one  hundred  and  seventy -four 
feet.  Upon  the  soutliern  side  of  the  hill,  just  below 
it,  are  the  stately  ruins  of  the  Bishop's  Palace,  of 
which  the  tower  has  been  restored.  Bishop  Hugh's 
ruined  Great  Hall  is  now  overgrown  with  ivy,  but 
the  walls  can  be  climbed  to  disclose  a  glorious  view 
of  the  cathedral. 

The  ancient  Ermine  Street  of  the  Romans  enters 
Lincoln  through  the  best-preserved  piece  of  Roman 
masonry  in  England,  built  at  the  beginning  of  the 
Ciiristian  era,  the  Newport  Gate  of  two  arches, 
where  on  either  hand  may  be  seen  fragments  of  the 
old  wall.  Xear  the  south-east  corner  of  this  origi- 
nally walled  area,  William  the  Conqueror  built  Lin- 
coln Castle,  with  its  gate  facing  the  cathedral.  The 
ruins  are  well  preserved,  and  parts  of  the  site  have 
been  used  for  the  jail  and  court-house.  Within  this 
old  castle  King  Stephen  besieged  the  empress  Maud, 
but  though  he  captured  it  she  escaped.  Her  parti- 
sans recaptui'ed  the  place,  and  Stephen  in  the  second 
siege  was  made  a  prisoner.  It  suffered  many  sieges 
in  the  troubled  times  afterwards.  In  the  Civil  War 
the  townspeople  supported  the  king,  but  being  at- 
tacked they  retreated  to  the  castle  and  cathedral, 
which  were  stormed  and  taken  by  the  Parliamentary 
army.  Afterwards  the  castle  was  dismantled.  One 
of  the  interesting  remains  in  Lincoln  is  the  "  Jew's 

Vol,  I.— 23 


354   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

House,"  one  of  the  most  ancient  specimens  of  do- 
mestic arcliitecture  in  England,  built  early  in  the 
twelfth  century,  and  said  to  have  been  the  home  in 
the  Hebrew  quarter  of  a  Jewess  who  was  hanged  for 
clipping  coin  in  the  reign  of  Edward  I.  But  the 
noble  cathedral  is  the  crowning  glory  of  this  inter- 
esting old  city,  the  massive  structure,  with  its  three 
surmounting  towers  standing  on  high,  being  visible 
for  many  miles  across  the  country  around. 

The  trade  of  Lincoln  by  sea  goes  down  the  river 
AVitham  through  the  low-lying  fen  country,  thirty 
miles  or  more  south-eastward,  to  the  ancient  St,  Bo- 
tolph's  Town,  now  known  as  Boston.  This  vener- 
able seaport  is  perhaps  best  known  from  its  associa- 
tion with  its  famous  New  England  prototype,  the 
founders  having  come  from  here.  It  has  about 
fifteen  thousand  people,  and  is  a  railway  centre  of 
some  importance.  Its  Church  of  St.  Botolph  has  a 
lofty  tower,  crowned  by  an  octagonal  lantern,  and  is 
known  as  the  "  ]>oston  Stumj^."  John  Cotton,  born 
in  1585,  was  vicar  here  before  he  went  to  Massa- 
chusetts, and  this  church  contains  a  chajiel,  restored 
by  Bostonians  of  New  England  in  1857,  in  his 
memory.  In  the  old  guildhall  elder  William 
Brewster  and  his  Pilgrim  companions  were  tried, 
Brewster  having  been  born  at  Scrooby  in  15G0,  and 
AVilliam  J^iadford,  the  governor  of  Plymouth 
Colony,  at  Austcrfield,  near  by,  in  1588. 


NOTTINGHAM.  355 

NOTTINGHAM. 

AVe  will  now  cross  over  tlie  border  from  Lincoln 
into  Nottinghamshire,  and,  seeking  the  valley  of  the 
Trent,  find  upon  the  steep  brow  of  a  cliff  by  the 
river  at  the  junction  with  the  little  river  Lecn  the 
ancient  castle  of  Nottingham,  which  is  surrounded 
by  the  busy  machinery  of  the  hosiery-weavers. 
AVlien  it  was  founded  no  one  accurately  knows,  but 
it  is  believed  to  antedate  the  Roman  occupation  of 
the  island.  As  Ion";  ago  as  the  tenth  centurv  there 
was  a  bridfje  across  the  Trent  at  Snodengahame — 
meaning  the  "  dwelling  among  the  rocks " — as  it 
was  then  called,  and  afterwards  the  town  suffered 
from  the  Danes,  as  it  also  suffered  during  the 
troubled  reign  of  King  Stephen.  The  castle  was 
built  by  one  of  the  Peverils  soon  after  the  Norman 
Conquest,  and  was  frequently  the  abode  of  kings. 
It  was  here  that  Roger  Mortimer  Avas  seized  prior  to 
being  tried  and  hanged  in  London.  He  was  tlie 
favorite  of  Queen  Isabella,  and  was  surprised  in 
L330  by  Edward  III.,  Avho  gained  entrance  to  the 
castle  by  a  secret  passage,  which  has  since  been 
known  as  ''  Mortimer's  Hole."  King  David  of  Scot- 
land and  Owen  Glendower  of  "Wales  were  held 
prisoners  in  Nottingham  Castle,  and  from  it  Richard 
III,  advanced  to  meet  his  fate  on  Bosworth  Field, 
while  Charles  I.  set  up  his  standard  and  gathered 
his  army  at  Nottingham  at  the  opening  of  the  Civil 


356   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE   AND   DESCRIPTIVE. 

Wars,  the  blowing  down  of  Itis  standard  by  a  gale 
on  Castle  Hill  being  taken  as  ominous  of  the  un- 
fortunate termination  of  the  conflict.  The  old  castle, 
which  fell  into  ruins,  subsequently  passed  into  pos- 
session of  William  Cavendish,  Duke  of  Newcastle, 
who  cleared  away  almost  the  whole  of  the  ancient 
structure  and  built  a  more  modern  one  upon  its  site 
in  1G74,  which  was  burnt  by  a  mob  in  1831,  in 
consequence  of  the  then  duke's  opposition  to  the 
lleform  15ill.  It  was  afterwards  acquired  by  the 
city  corporation  and  restored,  being  used  for  a  mu- 
seum. The  city  was  noted  for  its  manufactures  as 
early  as  the  reign  of  King  John,  and  the  hand-knit- 
ting of  stockings  was  introduced  in  the  sixteenth 
century.  Previously  to  that  time  hosiery  had  been 
cut  out  of  cloth,  with  the  seams  sewed  up  the  same 
as  outer  clothing.  As  early  as  1589  a  machine  for 
Aveaving  was  invented,  but  failing  to  reap  a  profit 
from  it,  the  inventor,  a  clergyman,  took  it  to  Paris, 
where  he  afterwards  died  broken-hearted.  Ulti- 
mately, his  apprentices  brought  the  machines  back 
to  Nottingham,  improved  them,  and  prospered, 
^lany  improvements  followed.  Jedcdiah  Strutt  pro- 
duced the  "  Derby  ribbed  hose  ;  "  then  the  warp-loom 
was  invcMited  in  the  last  century,  and  the  bobbin- 
traverse  net  in  1809.  The  improved  machinery  was 
not  introduced,  however,  without  serious  conflicts  with 
the  working-people.  In  the  early  part  of  the  present 
century  Nottingham  was  the  scene  of  the  "  Luddite  " 


NOTTINGHAM.  357 

riots,  in  vvliicli  the  stocking-makers  destroyed  over 
a  thousand  stocking-frames,  and  several  rioters  were 
killed  before  order  was  restored.  The  knitting- 
machines  have  since  been  steadily  improved,  and  now 
hosiery-making  is  carried  on  in  extensive  factories 
that  give  an  individuality  to  the  town.  The  rapidity 
with  which  stockings  are  reeled  off  the  machines  is 
astonishing.  An  ordinary  stocking  is  made  in  four 
pieces,  which  are  afterwards  sewed  or  knitted  to- 
gether by  another  machine.  Some  of  the  looms, 
however,  knit  the  legs  in  one  piece,  and  may  be  seen 
working  off  almost  endless  Avoollen  tubes,  which  are 
afterwards  divided  into  convenient  lengths.  Fancy 
hosiery  is  knitted  according  to  patterns,  the  setting 
up  of  Avhich  requires  great  skill.  Vast  amounts  of 
lace  are  Avoven,  and  in  the  factories  female  labor  pre 
ponderates.  Some  of  the  greatest  lace  and  hosiery 
factories  in  the  world  are  here,  notably  the  Morleys, 
employing  six  thousand  people,  the  Nottingham 
Manufacturing  Company,  and  the  great  lace  depot 
of  Thomas  Adams  &  Co.  The  upper  town  of 
Nottingliara,  clustering  around  the  castle  on  the 
river-crag,  has  a  picturesque  aspect  from  the  valley 
below.  Among  the  features  of  the  lower  town  is  the 
market-place,  a  triangular  area  of  sliglitly  over  five 
acres,  where  the  market  is  held  every  Saturday,  and 
where  once  a  year  is  also  held  that  great  event  of 
Nottingham,  the  Michaelmas  goose  fair.  Here  also 
disport  themselves  at  election-times  the  rougher  ele- 


358    KN(;LANr),    riCTURI<:SQUE  AND   DESCRIPTIVE, 

iiiont,  wlio  from  their  propensity  to  bleat  when  cx- 
})ressing  disapprobation,  are  known  as  the  "  Notting- 
ham Limbs,"  and  wlio  chiim  to  be  lineal  descendants 
of  that  hero  of  the  neighboring  Sherwood  Forest, 
Robin  Hood. 

SOUTHWELL. 

We  will  now  go  down  the  valley  of  the  Trent 
below  Nottingham,  and  mounting  the  gentle  hills 
that  border  Sherwood  Forest,  come  to  the  Roman 
station  Ad  Pontem,  of  which  the  Venerable  Bcdc 
was  the  historian.  Here  Pauliniis  was  baptized,  and 
it  was  early  made  the  site  of  an  episcopal  sec.  The 
name  was  Sudwell  at  the  Norman  Conquest,  and  then 
it  became  Soutlnvcll,  and  the  noted  minster  was  one 
of  the  favorite  residences  of  the  Archbishop  of 
York.  It  is  a  quiet,  old-fashioned  place,  with  plenty 
of  comfortable  residences,  and  in  a  large  church- 
yard on  ground  sloping  away  from  the  main  street, 
Avith  the  ruins  of  the  archbishop's  palace  near  by,  is 
Southwell  Minster.  There  are  few  finer  examples 
of  a  Norman  building  remaining  in  England,  the 
three  towers,  nave,  transepts,  and  chapter-house 
forming  a  majestic  group.  An  enormous  western 
window  has  been  inserted  by  later  architects,  rather 
to  the  detriment  of  the  gable,  and  this  produces  a 
singular  effect.  The  interior  of  the  minster  is 
mngniHcent.  The  Norman  nave  is  of  eight  bays 
with  semicircular  arches,  surmounted  by  a  triforium 


SOUTHWELL.  359 

of  rows  of  arches  almost  equal  to  those  below,  and 
rising  from  piers  with  clustered  side-columns.  It  is 
nearly  three-fourths  the  height  of  the  lower  stage, 
and  this  produces  a  grand  effect.  The  flat  roof  is 
modern,  it  and  the  bells  having  been  replaced  after 
the  church  was  burned  in  the  last  century.  The 
ruins  of  the  archiepiscopal  palace,  erected  six 
hundred  years  ago,  have  been  availed  of  in  one 
portion  for  a  dwelling-house.  Wolsey  built  part  of 
it,  and  beneath  the  battlemented  wall  enclosing  the 
garden  there  was  not  long  ago  found  the  skeleton  of 
a  soldier  in  armor,  a  relic  of  the  Civil  Wars.  The 
name  of  the  town  is  derived  from  its  wells.  The 
South  Well  is  a  short  distance  outside  the  limits  in  a 
little  park.  The  Holy  Well,  which  Avas  inside  the 
minster^  is  now  covered  up.  Lady  Well  was  just 
outside  the  church-walls,  but  a  wandering  clergy- 
man fell  into  it  one  dark  night  and  was  drowned, 
and  it  too  has  been  closed.  St.  Catherine's  Well 
was  surmounted  by  a  chapel,  and  is  in  repute  as  a 
cure  for  rheumatism.  The  ancient  inn  of  the 
Saracen's  Head  in  Southwell,  not  far  from  the 
minster  on  the  main  street,  witnessed  the  closing 
scene  of  the  Civil  War.  After  the  battle  cf  Naseby 
the  Scotch  had  reached  Southwell,  and  Montreville, 
an  agent  of  Cardinal  Mazarin,  came  there  to  ne- 
gotiate on  behalf  of  King  Charles  in  1646.  The 
Scotch  commissioners  had  rooms  in  the  archi- 
episcopal   palace,    and    Montreville    lodged   at   the 


3G0   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE   AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Saracen's  Head.  After  the  negotiations  had  pro- 
ceeded for  some  time,  the  king  in  disguise  quitted  Ox- 
ford in  April,  and  after  a  devious  journey  by  way  of 
Kewark  appeared  at  Montreville's  lodgings  at  the  inn 
on  IMay  Cth.  On  the  south  side  of  the  inn  was  an 
apartment  divided  into  a  dining-room  and  a  bedroom, 
which  the  king  occupied,  and  in  the  afternoon,  after 
dining  with  tlie  Scotch  commissioners,  he  placed 
himself  in  their  hands,  and  was  sent  a  prisoner  to  their 
head-quarters.  Tiie  canny  Scots  before  leaving 
stripped  the  lead  from  the  roof  of  the  palace,  and  it 
afterwards  fell  into  ruin,  so  that  Cromwell,  who 
arrived  subsequently,  found  it  uninhabitable,  and 
then  occupied  the  king's  room  at  the  Saracen's 
Head,  his  horses  being  stabled  in  Southwell  Minster. 
Southwell  since  has  had  an  uneventful  history. 

THE    DIKERIES. 

Not  far  away  is  the  well-known  Sherwood  Forest, 
wherein  in  the  olden  time  lived  the  famous  forester 
and  bandit  Kobin  Hood.  Roaming  among  its  spread- 
ing oaks  with  his  robber  band,  he  was  not  infre- 
quently a  visitor  to  the  bordering  towns,  sometimes 
for  j)leasure,  but  oftener  for  "  business."  "Who 
liobin  was,  or  exactly  when  he  lived,  no  one  seems 
to  know.  He  is  associated  alike  with  the  unsettled 
times  of  Kings  John  and  Kichard,  with  Henry  V. 
and  with  .Jack  Cade,  but  so  much  mystery  surrounds 
all  reports  of  him  that  some  do  not  hesitate  to  de- 


XI be  major  ©ah,  Sber\voo^  3f crest. 


THE  DUKERIES.  3G1 

clare  Robin  Hood  a  myth.  But  wlioever  he  was, 
his  memory  and  exploits  live  in  many  a  ballad  sung 
along  the  banks  of  the  Trent  and  in  the  towns  and 
villages  of  Sherwood  Forest.  His  abiding-place  is 
now  divided  up  into  magnificent  estates,  the  most 
famous  of  them  being  known  as  "  The  Dukeries." 
One  of  them,  near  Ollerton,  is  Thoresby  Hall,  the 
splendid  home  of  the  Earl  of  Manvers,  a  park 
that  is  ten  miles  in  circumference,  and  another  is 
liufford  Abbey,  the  seat  of  Lord  Savile.  Near  by  is 
the  stately  seat  of  the  present  Duke  of  Newcastle — 
Clumber  Park — charmingly  situated  between  Oller- 
ton and  Worksop.  From  the  entrance-lodge  a  car- 
riage-drive of  over  a  mile  through  the  well-wooded 
grounds  leads  up  to  the  elegant  yet  homelike  man- 
sion. It  is  of  modern  construction,  having  been  built 
in  1770,  and  has  received  important  additions  since. 
Before  that  time  the  park  was  a  tract  of  wild  wood- 
land, but  the  then  Duke  of  Newcastle  improved  it, 
and  constructed  an  extensive  lake,  covering  ninety 
acres,  at  a  cost  of  $35,000.  It  was  originally  in- 
tended for  a  shooting-box,  but  this  was  elaborately 
extended.  In  the  centre  of  the  west  front  is  a 
colonnade,  and  between  the  mansion  and  the  lake 
are  fine  gardens  ornamented  by  a  large  fountain. 
The  owner  of  Clumber  is  the  lineal  representative  of 
the  family  of  Pelham-Clinton — Avhich  first  appeared 
prominently  in  the  reign  of  Edward  I. — and  is 
Henry  Pelham  Archibald  Douglas  Pelham-Clinton, 


3G2    ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Duke  of  Newcastle.  Clumber  is  rich  in  ornaments, 
among  them  being  four  ancient  Roman  altars,  but 
the  most  striking  feature  is  tlie  full-rigged  ship 
which  with  a  consort  rests  upon  the  placid  bosom  of 
the  lake. 

Adjoining  Clumber  Park  is  the  most  celebrated 
of  "  The  Dukeries,"  Welbeck  Abbey,  which  is  one 
of  the  remarkable  estates  of  England,  a  place 
peculiar  to  itself.  The  mansion  is  about  four  miles 
from  Worksop,  and  the  surrounding  park  contains 
a  grand  display  of  tine  old  trees,  beneath  which 
roam  extensive  herds  of  deer.  Welbeck  Abbey  of 
White  Canons  was  founded  in  the  reign  of  Henry 
II.,  and  dedicated  to  St.  James.  After  the  dissolu- 
tion it  was  granted  to  Richard  Whalley,  and  sub- 
sequently passed  into  possession  of  8ir  Charles 
Cavendish,  a  son  of  the  famous  Bess  of  Ilardwicke, 
"whose  grandson  converted  the  abbey  into  an  elabo- 
rate mansion,  leaving  little  of  the  original  religious 
building  standing.  The  present  house  was  con- 
structed in  the  seventeenth  century,  its  old  riding- 
liouse  being  completed  in  1G23,  and  William  Caven- 
dish, then  the  Duke  of  Newcastle,  who  built  it,  was 
noted  as  the  most  accomplished  horseman  of  his 
time.  For  several  generations  Welbeck  remained 
in  possession  of  the  Dukes  of  Newcastle,  until  in  the 
last  century  an  only  daughter  and  the  heiress  of  the 
abbey  married  William  Bcntinck,  the  Duke  of  Port- 
land, thus  carrying  the  estate  over  to  that  family, 


THE  DUKEKIES.  363 

■which  noAv  possesses  it.  The  founder  of  this  ducal 
house  came  over  from  Holland  as  a  page  of  honor 
■with  King  William  III.  The  present  owner,  ■who 
not  long  ago  succeeded  to  the  title,  is  the  sixth  Duke 
of  Portland.  The  chief  feature  of  the  original  Wel- 
beck,  the  old  riding-house,  remains,  but  is  no  longer 
used  for  that  purpose.  It  is  a  grand  hall,  one  hun- 
dred and  seventy-seven  feet  long,  Avith  a  massive 
open-work  timber  roof  of  admirable  design.  The 
mansion  is  full  of  fine  apartments,  many  of  them 
elaborately  decorated,  but  it  is  not  from  these  that 
the  estate  gets  its  present  fame.  The  late  Duke  of 
Portland,  who  was  unmarried,  was  an  eccentric  man, 
and  he  developed  a  talent  for  burrowing  under- 
ground that  made  his  house  one  of  the  most  re- 
markable in  England  and  consumed  enormous  sums 
of  money.  The  approach  is  through  a  tunnel  two 
miles  long,  leading  to  a  curious,  yet  magnificent, 
series  of  subterranean  apartments.  The  libraries 
of  Welbeck,  five  superb  rooms  opening  into  each 
other,  the  picture-gallery,  a  spacious  hall  adjoining, 
one  hundred  and  fifty-nine  feet  long,  tlie  stables, 
large  gardens,  hot-houses,  lodges,  and  other  apart- 
ments, are  all  underground.  They  have  glass  roofs 
of  magnificent  design.  They  are  approached  from 
and  connected  ■with  the  rest  of  the  mansion  by  sub- 
terranean passages,  and,  being  lofty  rooms,  the  cost 
of  this  deep  digging  and  of  the  necessary  drainage 
and    other    adjuncts    may   be    imagined.     The    new 


3G4  ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

riding-liousc,  the  finest  in  existence,  and  also  under- 
ground, but  liglited  by  an  arched  glass  roof,  is  three 
hundred  and  seventy-nine  by  one  hundred  and  six 
feet,  and  is  fifty  feet  high.  It  is  elaborately  orna- 
mented, and  at  niglit  is  lighted  by  nearly  eight 
tliousand  gas-jets.  Near  it  are  the  extensive  hunt- 
ing-stables, coach-houses,  and  that  marked  feature 
of  Welbeck,  the  covered  "  gallop,"  one  thousand  and 
seventy-two  feet  long,  with  large  ''hanging  rooms" 
at  either  end ;  these  too  are  covered  Avith  glass,  so 
as  to  get  their  light  from  the  top.  The  whole  place 
abounds  in  subterranean  apartments  and  passages, 
while  above  ground  are  extensive  gardens  and 
dairies.  In  tlic  gardens  arc  the  peacli-wall,  one 
thousand  feet  long,  a  similar  range  of  pine-houses, 
a  fruit-arcade  of  ornamental  iron  arches  stretching 
nearly  a  quarter  of  a  mile,  with  apple  trees  trained 
on  one  side  and  pear  trees  on  the  other,  and  exten- 
sive beds  of  flowers  and  plants.  To  construct  and 
maintain  all  this  curious  magnificence  there  arc 
workshops  on  a  grand  scale.  This  eccentric  duke, 
who  practically  denied  himself  to  the  world,  and  for 
years  devoted  his  time  to  carrying  on  these  remark- 
able works  at  an  enormous  cost,  employed  over  two 
thousand  persons  in  burrowing  out  the  bowels  of  the 
earth  and  making  these  grand  yet  strange  a])art- 
ments.  When  finisiied  he  alone  could  enjoy  them, 
for  Welbeck  was  for  a  long  time  a  sealed  book  to 
the  outer  world.     But  the  eccentric  duke  died,  as  all 


THE  DUKERIES.  365 

men  must,  and  his  successor,  William  John  Arthur 
Charles  James  Cavendish-Bentinck,  the  present 
Duke  of  Portland,  opened  Welbeek  to  view  and 
to  the  astonishment  of  all  who  saw  it.  Then  the 
Prince  of  Wales  and  a  noble  company  visited  the 
strano-e  vet  mao;nificent  structure,  and  for  the  first 
time  the  amazed  assemblage  explored  this  under- 
ground palace  in  Sherwood  Forest,  and  when  their 
wonder  was  satisfied  they  turned  on  the  myriads  of 
gas-jets,  and  amid  a  blaze  of  artificial  light  indulged 
in  a  ball — an  unwonted  scene  for  the  weird  old 
abbey  of  the  eccentric  and  solitary  duke.  Like 
the  fairies  and  mermaids  of  old  in  their  under- 
ground palaces,  the  prince  and  his  friends  at  Wel- 
beek right  merrily 

"  Held  their  courtly  revels  down,  down  below." 

Also  in  this  neighborhood  is  Newstead  Abbey,  the 
ancient  seat  of  the  Byrons.  It  is  about  eight  miles 
from  Nottingham,  and  was  founded  by  the  Augustin- 
ians  in  the  time  of  Henry  11.  In  1540  it  came  into 
possession  of  Sir  John  Byron,  and  a  century  later 
was  held  for  King  Charles.  The  poet  Byron's  bed- 
room remains  almost  as  he  left  it,  and  on  the  lawn  is 
the  monument  to  his  favorite  dog,  ''  Boatswain." 
Lord  Byron  is  buried  in  the  church  at  Hucknall 
Torkard,  on  the  road  to  Nottingham.  Newstead 
Abbey  contains  several  relics  of  Livingstone,  the 
African  explorer.     Near  it  is   Robin  Hood's  Cave, 


3CG   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

and  the  neighborhood  is  full  of  remains  of  the 
famous  chieftain,  such  as  his  Hill  and  his  Chair,  and 
Fountain  Dale  where  Robin  encountered  Friar  Tuck. 

XKWAKK. 

Descending  again  to  tlic  banks  of  the  Trent,  we 
come  to  the  causeway  whicli  carries  over  the  flat 
meadows  the  Great  North  Koad,  the  Roman  military 
route  to  the  north  of  England,  which  made  it  neces- 
sary to  build  a  castle  to  hold  the  key  to  its  passage 
across  the  river.  "We  are  told  that  Egbert  built  the 
earliest  fortress  here,  but  the  Danes  destroyed  it. 
Leofric,  Earl  of  ^lercia,  rebuilt  it,  and  gave  the 
castle  the  name  of  the  "  New  A\'ork."  But  it  too 
fell  into  decay,  and  in  1123  the  ])resent  castle  was 
built,  which,  though  much  altered  and  afterwards 
sadly  ruined  in  the  Civil  War,  has  come  down  to  the 
present  time.  It  was  here  that,  after  his  army  was 
swamped  in  the  Wash,  King  John  died  in  121G, 
some  say  by  poison,  but  the  prosaic  historian  at- 
tributes the  sad  result  to  over-indulgence  in  "  unripe 
j)eaches  and  new  beer."  In  the  Civil  War  it  was 
a  royal  stronghold  and  sent  King  Charles  large 
numbers  of  recruits.  Then  it  was  besieged  by 
Cromwell,  but  stoutly  resisted,  and  Prince  Rupert 
by  some  brilliant  manoeuvres  relieved  it.  Finally, 
the  king  sought  refuge  within  its  walls  after  the 
defeat  at  Naseby,  and  here  he  was  besieged  by  the 
Scotch    until    his    voluntary   surrender    to    them    at 


NEWARK.  367 

Southwell,  when  two  clays  afterwards,  by  his  order, 
Newark  capitulated  to  his  captors.  The  Parliamen- 
tary forces  afterwards  dismantled  the  castle,  and  it 
fell  into  decay,  but  it  has  recently  been  restored  as 
well  as  possible,  and  the  site  converted  into  a  public 
garden.  Within  the  town  of  Xewark-on-Trent 
are  several  objects  of  interest.  At  the  Saracen's 
Head  Inn,  wliich  has  existed  from  the  time  of  Ed- 
"vvard  III.,  Sir  Walter  Scott  tells  us  that  Jeanie 
Deans  slept  on  her  journey  from  Midlothian  to  Lon- 
don. The  most  striking  part  of  the  town  is  the 
market-square,  Avliich  is  very  large,  and  is  sur- 
rounded by  old  and  interesting  houses,  several  of 
them  projecting  completely  over  the  footwalks,  and 
having  the  front  walls  supported  upon  columns — a 
most  picturesque  arrangement.  One  of  these  old 
houses  has  windows  in  continuous  rows  in  the  upper 
stories,  having  between  them  wooden  beams  and 
figures  moulded  in  plaster.  Through  the  openings 
between  these  old  houses  can  be  seen  the  churcli, 
which  is  one  of  the  finest  parish  churches  in  this 
district,  so  celebrated  for  the  magnificence  of  its  re- 
ligious houses.  Surmounting  its  Early  English 
tower  is  a  spire  of  later  date.  The  plan  is  cruci- 
form, but  with  very  short  transepts,  not  extending 
beyond  the  aisles,  which  are  wide  and  stretch  the 
entire  length  of  the  church.  There  is  a  fine  roof 
of  carved  oak,  and  some  of  the  stained  glass  and 
interior  paintings  are  highly  prized.    It  was  at  New- 


368    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

ark  that  Thomas  ]\Iagnus  lived  and  founded  the 
grammar-school  at  whicli  the  antiquarian  Dr. 
Stukeley  was  educated,  and  afterwards  the  famous 
Warburton,  who  became  Bisliop  of  Gloucester. 

In  Newark,  over  three  hundred  years  ago,  there 
was  a  tavern  called  the  Talbot  Arms,  named  in 
lionor  of  the  Earl  of  Shrewsbury,  whose  countess 
was  Mary,  daughter  of  the  famous  Bess  of  Hard- 
wicke  by  her  second  husband,  ISir  William  Caven- 
dish. Between  the  Talbots  and  the  neighboring 
family  of  Stanhopes  at  Shelford  there  Avas  a  feud, 
which  resulted  in  the  Stanhopes  defacing  the  tavern- 
sign.  This  was  not  taken  notice  of  by  the  Earl 
of  Shrewsbury,  but  the  quarrel  was  assumed  by  the 
imperious  countess  and  her  brother,  Sir  Charles 
Cavendish.  They  dispatched  a  messenger  to  Sir 
Thomas  Stanhope,  accusing  him  and  his  son  of  tlic 
insult,  and  declaring  him  to  be  a  "reprobate  and  his 
son  John  a  rascal."  Then  a  few  days  later  they 
sent  a  formal  defiance :  the  Stanhopes  avoided  a 
duel  as  long  as  possible  until  they  began  to  be  posted 
as  cowards,  and  then,  having  gone  to  London, 
whither  Cavendish  followed  them,  a  duel  was  ar- 
ranged with  the  younger  Stanhope  at  Lambeth 
Bridge.  They  met  after  several  delays,  when  it 
was  found  that  Stanhope  had  his  doublet  so  thickly 
quilted  as  to  be  almost  impenetrable  to  a  svvord- 
thrust.  Then  there  was  a  new  dispute,  and  it  was 
proposed  they  should  fight  in  their  shirts,  but  this 


HULL  AND  BEVERLEY.  269 

Stanhope  declined,  pleading  a  cold.  Cavendish 
offered  to  lend  him  a  waistcoat,  but  this  too  was  de- 
clined ;  then  Cavendish  waived  all  objections  to  the 
doublet  and  proposed,  to  fight  anyhow,  but  the  sec- 
onds interposed  and  the  duel  was  put  off.  Stanhope 
was  then  again  posted  as  a  coward,  and  he  and  his 
adherents  were  hustled  in  the  streets  of  London.  A 
few  days  later  Stanhope  and  his  party  were  attacked 
in  Fleet  Street  by  the  Talbots,  and  one  of  the  for- 
mer faction  was  mortally  wounded.  The  feud  went 
on  six  years,  Avhen  one  day  Cavendish,  riding  near 
his  home  in  Xottingharashirc  with  three  attendants, 
was  attacked  by  Stanhope  and  twenty  horsemen, 
lie  fought  bravely,  and  was  badly  wounded,  but 
killed  four  and  wounded  tAVO  others  of  his  opponents, 
when,  reinforcements  appearing,  the  Stanhope  party 
fled,  leaving  six  horses  and  nearly  all  their  hats  and 
weapons  behind  them.  But  all  feuds  have  an  end, 
and  this  one  ultimately  exhausted  itself,  the  families 
Avithin  a  century  being  united  in  marriage.  Newark- 
on-Trent  is  now  noted  for  its  breweries,  but  the 
Talbot  Arms  has  given  way  to  the  Clinton  Arms  as 
its  principal  inn. 

HULL  AND  BEVERLEY. 

Following  the  Trent  down  to  the  Humber,  and 
turning  towards  the  sea,  we  come  to  the  noted  sea- 
port of  Hull,  or,  as  it  is  best  known  in  those  parts, 

Kingston-upon-IIull.      While    not    possessing   great 
Vol.  L— 24 


370    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

attractions  for  the  ordinary  tourist,  yet  Hull  ranks 
as  the  third  seaport  of  England,  being  second  only 
to  London  and  Liverpool,  and  having  over  three 
hundred  and  fifty  thousand  population.  It  is  the 
great  packet-station  for  the  north  of  Europe,  with 
steam  lines  leading  to  Holland,  Denmark,  kSweden, 
Norway,  Russia,  and  the  Baltic,  most  of  the  English 
trade  with  those  countries  being  centred  at  Hull. 
It  is  a  town  of  extreme  activity,  its  docks  being  all 
the  time  crowded  with  shipping,  and  its  location, 
practically  upon  an  island,  with  the  broad  river 
Humbcr  on  the  south,  the  river  Hull  upon  the  east, 
and  docks  upon  the  northern  and  western  sides, 
giving  it  every  maritime  convenience.  It  is  also  a 
great  fishing-port,  having  some  five  hundred  vessels 
engaged  in  the  North  Sea  fisheries.  The  docks, 
though  inferior  to  those  of  Liverpool,  are  the  chief 
feature  of  the  town.  The  Hull  Kiver  itself  forms 
a  natural  dock  about  a  mile  and  a  half  long,  and 
from  this  a  chain  of  other  docks  leads  through  the 
warehouses  and  the  town  to  the  Ilumber.  Hull 
possesses  the  Trinity  House,  one  of  the  three  an- 
cient establishments  in  England — the  others  being 
at  London  and  Newcastle — which  were  founded  first 
as  religious  fraternities  in  the  fourteenth  century, 
and  became  afterwards  establishments  for  the  relief 
of  distressed  and  decayed  seamen  and  their  families. 
The  present  Trinity  House  building  was  erected  in 
the  last  century.     The   chief  ornament  of  Hull  is 


HULL  AND  BEVERLEY.  871 

the  Wilberforce  lyfonumcnt,  a  pillar  of  sandstone 
seventy-two  feet  high,  erected  about  seventy  years 
ago,  and  surmounted  by  a  statue  of  tlie  celebrated 
philanthropist.  He  was  born  on  High  Street 
August  24,  1759,  this  being  the  most  important 
thoroughfare  in  ancient  Hull,  but  now  a  narrow  and 
inconvenient  lane  following  the  right  bank  of  the 
Hull  River.  Here  Avere  in  former  days  the  houses 
of  the  great  Hull  merchants,  and  the  Wilberforce 
House  is  about  halfway  down  the  street.  It  is  a 
curious  specimen  of  red  brickwork,  of  a  style  said 
to  have  been  imported  from  Flanders  in  the  reign  of 
William  and  Mary.  It  is  a  low,  broad  house  with  a 
surmounting  tower  over  the  doorway.  Hull  has 
little  else  of  interest  in  the  way  of  buildings.  Its 
Holy  Trinity  Church,  in  the  market-place,  is  the 
largest  parish  church  in  England,  having  been 
thoroughly  restored,  and  the  Town  Plall,  built  in 
the  Italian  style,  with  a  clock-tower,  is  its  finest 
edifice  of  modern  construction.  Across  the  wide 
estuary  of  the  Ilumber  the  low-lying  Lincolnshire 
coast  is  not  inappropriately  called  New  Holland. 

We  have  now  come  into  Yorkshire,  and  a  few 
minutes'  ride  northward  by  railway  along  the  valley 
of  the  Hull  River  bi-ings  the  visitor  to  Beverley,  an 
old-fashioned  Yorkshire  town  of  considerable  an- 
tiquity, eight  miles  from  the  seaport.  This  was 
anciently  a  walled  town,  but  of  the  entrance-gates 
only  one  survives,  the  North  Bar,  of  the  time  of 


372    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

Edward  III.  It  is  a  good  specimen  of  brick  archi- 
tecture, Avitli  mouldings  and  niches  upon  the  surface 
and  battlements  at  the  top.  This  is  a  favorite  old 
town  for  the  retired  merchant  and  tradesman  wiio 
wish  to  pass  the  declining  years  of  life  in  quiet,  and 
it  contains  many  ancient  buildings  of  interest. 
Several  of  these  are  clustered  around  the  pictu- 
resque market-square,  which  is  an  enclosure  of  about 
four  acres,  and  contains  a  quaint  cross,  a  relic  of  the 
time  when  it  was  customary  to  build  market-crosses. 
These  ancient  crosses,  which  were  practically 
canopies  erected  over  a  raised  platform,  were  gen- 
erally used  as  pulpits  by  the  preachers  when  con- 
ducting religious  services  in  the  open  air.  Some- 
times they  were  memorials  of  the  dead.  We  are 
told  there  were  formerly  five  thousand  of  these 
crosses  of  various  kinds  in  England,  but  most  of 
them  were  destroyed  in  the  Civil  Wars.  At  these 
old  crosses  proclamations  used  to  be  read  and  tolls 
collected  from  the  market-peo])le.  The  covered 
market-cross  at  Beverley  was  one  of  the  last  that 
was  erected.  The  name  of  this  interesting  town  is 
said  to  be  derived  from  Beaver  Lake,  the  site  having 
at  one  time  been  surrounded  by  lakes  that  were 
formed  by  the  overflowing  of  the  Humber,  in  which 
beavers  lived  in  great  numbers.  The  Beverley 
Minster  is  an  attractive  Gothic  church,  and  from  the 
tops  of  its  towers  there  is  an  excellent  view  over 
the  rich  and  almost  level  valley  through  which  the 


SHEFFIELD.  3/3 

Hull  River  flows,  while  within  the  minster  there  is 
a  beautiful  shrine  of  the  Percys,  dating  from  1365. 
Leconfield  Castle,  in  the  suburbs,  was  an  ancient 
residence  of  the  Percys,  of  which  the  moat  alone 
remains. 

SHEFFIELD. 

Let  us  now  ascend  the  estuary  of  the  Humbcr, 
and,  proceeding  up  its  numerous  tributaries,  seek 
out  various  places  of  interest  in  the  West  Riding  of 
Yorkshire.  And  first,  ascending  the  river  Don,  we 
come  to  that  great  manufacturing  centre  of  the  "  Black 
Country,"  sacred  to  coal  and  iron,  Sheffield.  Murray's 
Guide  tells  us  that  while  Sheffield  is  one  of  the 
largest  and  most  important  towns  in  Yorkshire,  it  is 
"  beyond  all  question  the  blackest,  dirtiest,  and  least 
respectable."  Horace  Walpole  in  the  last  century 
wrote  that  Sheffield  is  "  one  of  the  foulest  towns  of 
England  in  the  most  charming  situation."  It  is  a 
crowded  city,  with  narrow  and  badly-arranged 
streets,  having  few  handsome  public  buildings,  but 
bristling  with  countless  tall  chimneys  belching  forth 
clouds  of  heavy  smoke  that  hang  like  a  pall  over 
the  place  The  Don  and  its  tributaries  have  their 
beds  defiled,  and  altogether  the  smoky  city  is  an 
unpleasant  contrast  with  the  beauty  of  the  sur- 
rounding country.  But,  unfortunately,  an  omelette 
cannot  be  made  without  breaking  eggs,  nor  can 
Sheffield  make  cutlery  without  smoke  and  bad  odors, 
all  of  which  have  amazingly  multiplied  within  the 


374   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

present  century,  its  population  Iiaving  grown  from 
fortj-fivo  thousand  in  1801  to  nearly  four  hundred 
thousand  now.  It  stands  at  the  confluence  of  the 
rivers  Don  and  Sheaf,  its  name  being  derived  from 
the  latter.  Three  smaller  streams  join  them  within 
the  city  and  are  utilized  for  water-power.  The  facto- 
ries spread  over  the  lowlands  of  the  Don  valley,  and 
mount  up  its  western  slopes  towards  the  moorlands 
that  stretch  away  to  Derbyshire;  it  is  therefore  as 
hilly  as  it  is  grimy.  Sheffield  at  the  time  of  the 
Korman  Conquest  was  the  manor  of  Hallam,  which 
had  passed  through  various  families,  until,  in  the 
seventeenth  century,  it  became  by  marriage  the 
property  of  the  Duke  of  Norfolk.  The  present 
duke  is  lord  of  the  manor  of  Sheffield,  and  derives 
a  large  income  from  his  vast  estates  there,  owning 
a  large  part  of  the  town.  Sheffield  Castle  once 
stood  at  the  confluence  of  the  two  rivers,  but  all 
traces  of  it  have  disappeared.  The  manor-house, 
which  has  been  restored,  dates  from  the  time  of 
Henry  VIII.  It  is  three  stories  high,  and  a  turret 
staircase  leads  from  floor  to  floor,  and  finally  out 
upon  the  flat  roof. 

We  are  told  that  Sheffield  manufactures  of  metals 
began  in  the  days  of  the  Romans,  and  also  that 
Sheffield-made  arrows  fell  thickly  at  Crecy  and 
Agincourt.  Richmond  used  them  with  effect  at  Bos- 
worth  Field,  and  in  the  sixteenth  century  we  read 
of  Sheffield  knives  and  whittles.     Almost  the  only 


SHEFFIELD.  375 

ancient  building  of  any  note  tlie  city  has  is  tlie 
parish  church  of  St.  Peter,  but  it  is  so  much  patched 
and  altered  that  there  is  difficulty  in  distinguishing 
the  newer  from  the  older  parts.  The  chief  among 
the  modern  structures  is  the  new  Municipal  Building, 
completed  in  1897.  There  also  is  the  Cutlers'  Hall, 
a  Grecian  structure  erected  for  the  Cutlers  Company 
in  1833,  and  enlarged  afterwards  by  the  addition  of 
a  handsome  apartment.  This  company,  the  auto- 
crats of  Sheffield,  was  founded  in  1624  by  act  of 
Parliament  with  two  express  objects — to  keep  a 
check  upon  the  number  of  apprentices  and  to  exam- 
ine into  the  quality  of  Sheffield  wares,  all  of  which 
were  to  be  stamped  with  the  warranty  of  their  ex- 
cellence. But  recently  the  restrictive  powers  of 
this  company  have  been  swept  away,  and  it  is  now 
little  more  than  a  grantor  of  trade-marks  and  an  ex- 
cuse for  an  annual  banquet,  the  famous  Sheffield 
Cutlers'  Feast,  given  in  September,  which  is  noted 
for  its  display  of  political  oratory.  The  office  of  the 
master  cutler,  Avho  presides  on  this  occasion,  is  the 
highest  honorary  dignity  the  townsmen  have  in  their 
gift.  Sheffield  has  extensive  markets  and  parks, 
and  the  Duke  of  Norfolk  is  conspicuous  in  his  gifts 
of  this  character  to  the  city  ;  but  overtopping  all 
else  are  the  enormous  works,  which  make  every- 
thing into  which  iron  and  steel  can  be  converted, 
from  huge  guns,  armor-plates,  and  railway-rails, 
down    to    the    most    delicate    springs    and    highly- 


376   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

tempered  cutlery.  Their  products  go  to  every  part 
of  the  world,  and  are  of  enormous  value  and  im- 
portance. 

WAKEFIELD. 

Upon  the  Calder,  another  tributary  of  the  Hum- 
ber,  northward  of  the  Don,  is  the  town  of  Wake- 
field, which,  until  the  recent  great  growth  of  Leeds, 
was  the  head-quarters  of  the  Yorkshire  clotliing- 
tradc.  It  was  here  that  in  the  AVars  of  the  Roses 
the  battle  of  Wakefield  was  fought  on  the  closing 
day  of  the  year  14G0.  The  Duke  of  York  wished 
to  remain  at  Wakefield  on  the  defensive  against 
Queen  Margaret's  Lancastrian  army  of  twenty  thou- 
sand men,  for  his  forces  were  barely  one-fourth  that 
number.  The  Earl  of  Salisbury,  however,  prevailed 
on  him  to  advance  to  meet  the  queen,  and  he  prob- 
ably had  no  idea  of  the  strength  she  had  to  oppose 
him.  The  duke  was  soon  cut  off,  and  was  among 
the  first  to  fsill,  his  head  having  afterwards  been  put 
on  the  Micklegate  IJar  at  York.  Scenes  of  great 
barbarity  followed :  the  Duke  of  York's  son,  the 
Earl  of  Rutland,  M'as  murdered  with  shocking 
cruelty  on  Wakefield  Bridge  after  the  battle.  Young 
Rutland's  brother,  afterwards  Edward  IV.,  erected 
a  chantry  on  the  bridge  on  the  spot  where  he  was 
slain,  in  order  that  prayer  nnght  be  constantly  said 
in  it  for  the  repose  of  the  souls  of  the  followers  of  the 
White  Rose  who  were  slain  in  the  battle.  It  covers 
thirty  by  twenty-four  feet,  and  has  been  restored  by 


LEEDS.  377 

a  successor  of  Goldsmith's  "  Vicar  of  Wakefield." 
Near  the  bridge  the  spot  is  pointed  out  where  the 
Duke  of  York  was  killed,  now  marked  by  two 
willows.  There  is  a  fine  old  three-gabled  house  in 
Wakefield  which  was  built  about  the  same  date  as 
the  battle  was  fought,  and  is  now  divided  into  small 
shops.  It  is  a  good  specimen  of  the  ancient  black- 
and-white  tiuibered  house,  though  the  carved  work 
on  the  front  has  been  considerably  defaced.  It 
stands  in  the  Kirkgate,  Avhich  runs  down  to  the 
Calder,  and  is  known  locally  as  the  "  Six  Chimblies." 
Wakefield  was  made  a  bishopric  in  1888,  and  its 
handsome  parish  church,  which  was  thoroughly  re- 
stored, was  advanced  to  the  dignity  of  a  cathedral. 
The  town  is  the  capital  of  the  West  Riding  of 
Yorkshire. 

LEEDS. 

Further  up  the  Calder  and  about  nine  miles  north 
of  Wakefield  is  the  great  commercial  capital  of 
Yorksire  and  centre  of  the  cloth-trade,  Leeds,  built 
in  the  valley  of  the  river  Aire.  Twelve  hundred 
years  ago  this  region,  embracing  the  valleys  of  the 
Aire  and  the  Calder,  was  the  independent  kingdom 
of  Loidis.  It  was  soon  overrun  and  conquered, 
however,  by  the  Anglian  hosts,  and  ultimately  the 
conquerors  built  here  the  monastery  that  in  Bede's 
time  was  presided  over  by  the  abbot  Thrydwulf. 
This  stood  on  the  site  of  the  present  parish  church, 
and  in  the  eighth  century  it  was  called  "  the  monas- 


378   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

tcry  at  Leeta."  It  stood  at  the  crossing  of  two  im- 
portant Roman  roads  in  the  midst  of  a  forest.  This 
was  the  beginning  of  the  great  city,  for  soon  a 
hamlet  gathered  around  the  monastery,  tliough  long 
since  the  woods,  and  indeed  all  green  things,  were 
driven  away  from  Leeds.  The  village  was  laid 
waste  by  William  the  Conqueror,  and  at  the  time  of 
the  Domesday  Book  it  was  one  of  one  hundred  and 
fifty  manors  held  by  Baron  Ilbert  de  Lacy,  Avhose 
possessions  stretched  halfway  across  Yorkshire. 
He  built  a  castle  at  Leeds,  which  was  afterwards  a 
prison  of  Richard  II.,  but  has  long  since  disap- 
peared. In  1530,  Leland  described  Leeds  as  ''a 
pretty  market-town,  as  large  as  Bradford,  but  not  so 
quick  as  it."  Charles  I.  incorporated  it,  and  the 
cloth-market  was  then  of  some  importance.  In  the 
Civil  War  it  was  taken  by  the  Royalists,  and  after- 
wards retaken  by  Fairfax  for  the  Parliament  in  a 
short,  sharp  struggle,  in  which  a  clergyman  named 
Scholfield  distinguished  himself  by  his  valor,  and 
*' by  his  triumphant  psalm-singing"  as  work  after 
work  was  captured  from  the  enemy.  Flemish 
workmen  brought  cloth-m.iking  into  this  part  of 
Yorkshire  as  early  as  the  reign  of  Edward  III.,  and 
two  centuries  ago  the  cloth-makers  prospered  so 
much  that  they  held  a  market  twice  a  week  at  Leeds 
on  a  long,  narrow  bridge  crossing  the  Aire.  They 
laid  their  cloth  on  the  battlements  of  the  bridge 
and  on    benches    below,  and    the    country  clothiers 


LEEDS.  379 

could  buy  for  four  cents  from  the  innkeepers  "a 
pot  of  ale,  a  noggin  of  porridge,  and  a  trencher  of 
boiled  or  roast  beef."  This  substantial  supply  was 
known  as  the  ''  brigg  (bridge)-shot,"  and  from  the 
bridge  ran  the  street  known  as  the  Briggate,  which 
has  since  developed  into  one  of  the  finest  avenues 
of  the  city. 

Leeds  began  to  grow  in  the  last  century,  when  it 
became  the  chief  mart  of  the  woollen  clothiers, 
while  the  worsted  trade  gathered  about  Bradford. 
These  still  remain  the  centres  of  the  two  great  divis- 
ions of  the  woollen  industry,  which  is  the  character- 
istic business  of  Yorkshire.  The  factories  began 
then  to  appear  at  Leeds,  and  in  the  present  century 
the  city  has  made  astonishing  advances,  growing 
from  fifty-three  thousand  population  in  1801  until  it 
exceeds  four  hundred  thousand  now.  The  great  cloth- 
mart  to-day  is  for  miles  a  region  of  tall  chimneys  and 
barrack-like  edifices,  within  which  steadily  roars 
machinery  that  represents  some  of  the  most  ingeni- 
ous skill  of  the  human  race.  Within  this  hive  of 
busy  industry  there  still  linger  some  memorials  of 
the  past  among  its  hundreds  of  cloth-mills.  Turning 
out  of  the  broad  Briggate  into  the  quiet  street  of 
St.  John,  we  come  to  the  church  built  there  by  the 
piety  of  the  wealthy  clothier  John  Harrison,  and  con- 
secrated in  1634.  St.  John's  Church,  which  he  built 
and  presented  to  the  town  because  the  older  parish 
church  could  scarce  hold  half  the  inhabitants,  con- 


380   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

sists  of  a  long  nave  and  chancel,  Avith  a  south  aisle. 
It  is  of  Gothic  architecture,  and  mucli  of  the  an- 
cient woodwork,  including  the  pulpit,  remains. 
Arabesques  moulded  in  white  plaster  fill  the  panels 
between  the  main  roof-beams.  This  interesting 
church  has  undergone  little  historical  change  ex- 
cepting the  rebuilding  of  the  tower.  John  Harrison 
is  entombed  in  the  church.  The  old  parish  church 
in  Kirkgate  has  been  entirely  rebuilt.  The  other 
churches  of  Leeds,  like  this  one,  are  all  modern, 
and  it  also  has  an  imposing  Town  Hall,  opened  by 
the  queen  in  1858,  in  which  are  held  the  annual 
musical  festivals,  which  have  attained  much  impor- 
tance. A  statue  of  the  Duke  of  Wellington  stands 
in  the  square  in  front.  The  two  Cloth  Halls  of 
Leeds,  the  Mixed  Cloth  Hall  and  the  White  Cloth 
Hall,  where  the  business  of  selling  was  at  first 
carried  on,  are  now  little  used,  the  trade  being  con- 
ducted directly  between  the  manufacturer  and  the 
clothier.  Some  of  the  mills  are  of  enormous  size, 
and  they  include  every  operation  from  the  raw 
material  to  the  finished  fabric.  But,  with  all  their 
ingenious  machinery,  the  cloth-weavers  have  not  yet 
been  able  to  supersede  the  use  of  the  teasel,  by  which 
the  loose  fibres  of  wool  are  raised  to  the  surface  to 
form,  when  cut  and  sheared,  the  pile  or  nap.  These 
teasels,  which  are  largely  grown  in  Yorkshire,  are 
fastened  into  a  cylinder,  and  at  least  three  thousand 
of  them  will  be  consumed  in  "teasling"  a  piece  of 


JBolton  Bbbei?. 


BOLTON  ABBEY.  381 

cloth  forty  yards  long.  In  the  suburbs  of  Leeds  are 
the  well-preserved  ruins  of  Kirkstall  Abbey  of  the 
Cistercians,  founded  in  the  twelfth  century. 

BOLTON  ABBEY. 

North  of  the  valley  of  the  Aire  is  the  valley  of 
the  ^^^harfe  River,  and  following  that  pleasant  stream 
a  shoi't  distance  up  Ave  come  to  Runibald's  Moor 
and  the  water-cure  establishments  of  the  town  of 
Ilkley,  which  is  an  array  of  villas  and  terraces 
spreading  up  the  hillside  from  the  southern  bank  of 
the  river.  The  neighborhood  is  full  of  attractive 
rock-  and  river-scenery.  In  the  suburbs  is  the  pal- 
ace of  Ben  Rhydding,  built  in  the  Scottish  baronial 
style,  with  the  Cow  and  Calf  Rocks  overhanging  the 
adjacent  park.  The  Panorama  Rock  also  commands 
a  wide  prospect,  while  Runibald's  Moor  itself  is  ele- 
vated over  thirteen  hundred  feet.  A  few  miles  from 
Ilkley  are  the  celebrated  ruins  of  Bolton  Abbey, 
founded  by  the  Augustinians  in  the  twelfth  century, 
standing  on  a  patch  of  open  ground,  around  which 
the  Wiiarfe  curves,  but  with  much  woods  clustering 
near  the  ruins  and  on  the  river-bank.  Bolton 
stands  in  a  deep  valley,  and  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  river  rises  the  steep  rock  of  Simon's  Seat,  six- 
teen hundred  feet  high.  The  architecture  of  the 
abbey  is  of  various  styles,  the  west  front  coming 
down  to  us  from  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII.,  while  its 
gateway  is  much  older.     There  is  no   south  aisle  to 


382   ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND   DESCRIPTIVE. 

the  abbey,  and  at  present  the  nave  and  north  aisle 
are  roofed  in  and  serve  as  the  parish  church.  The 
cast  end  of  this  aisle  is  divided  from  the  rest  by  an 
ancient  wcoden  screen  so  as  to  form  a  chapel,  and 
beneath  this  is  the  vault  where  the  former  owners 
of  Bolton — the  Claphams  and  ]Mauleverers — were 
buried.  Some  years  ago,  when  the  floor  was  being 
repaired,  their  coffins  were  found  standing  upright, 
whereof  the  poet  Wordsworth  tells  us : 

"  Through  the  chinks  in  the  fractured  floor 
I/Ook  down  and  see  a  gri.'*ly  sight — 
A  vault  where  the  bodies  are  buried  upright: 

There  face  by  face  and  hand  by  hand, 

The  Claphams  and  Maulevercrs  stand." 

The  ruins  of  the  north  transo})t  are  in  fair  preserva- 
tion, and  the  choir  has  a  beautiful  arcade,  wliile 
through  the  'openings  beneath  there  is  a  charming 
view  of  the  green-bordered  river  and  of  the  hills 
beyond.  Bolton  Hall,  which  was  the  ancient  gate- 
way of  the  abbey,  is  opposite  its  western  front,  and 
is  one  of  the  favorite  homes  in  the  shooting  season 
of  the  Duke  of  Devonshire,  its  owner. 

A  pleasant  walk  of  two  miles  along  the  Wharfe 
brings  us  to  the  famous  rapid,  the  Strid,  where  the 
river  is  hemmed  in  between  ledges  of  rock,  and  the 
scene  of  the  rushing  waters  is  very  fine,  especially 
after  a  rain.  Beautiful  paths  wind  along  the  hill- 
sides and  through  the  woods,  and  here,  where  the 


BOLTON  ABBEY.  383 

ruins  of  Bardon  Tower  rise  liigli  above  the  valley, 
is  a  favorite  resort  of  artists.  At  the  most  con- 
tracted part  of  the  rocky  river-passage  the  water 
rushes  through  a  narrow  trench  cut  out  for  about 
sixty  yards  length,  within  which  distance  it  falls  ten 
feet.  The  noise  here  is  almost  deafening,  and  at  the 
narrowest  part  the  distance  across  is  barely  five  feet. 
It  looks  easy  to  jump  over,  but  from  the  peculiar 
position  of  the  slippery  rocks  and  the  confusing 
noise  of  the  rushing  Avater  it  is  a  dangerous  leap. 

'•  Tliis  stridlng-place  is  called  '  the  Strid,' 
A  name  which  it  took  of  yore : 
A  thousand  years  hath  it  borne  that  name, 
And  shall  a  thousand  more." 

It  was  here  that  young  Romilly,  the  "  Boy  of  Egre- 
mont,"  was  drowned  several  centuries  ago,  the  story 
of  his  death  being  told  by  Wordsworth  in  his  poem 
of  "  The  Force  of  Prayer."  He  had  been  ranging 
through  Bardon  Wood,  holding  a  greyhound  in  a 
leash,  and  tried  to  leap  across  the   Strid : 

"  He  sprang  in  glee;  for  what  cared  he 

That  the  river  was  strong  and  the  rocks  were  steep? 
But  the  greyhound  in  the  leash  hung  back, 
And  checked  him  in  his  leap. 

"  The  boy  is  in  the  arms  of  Wharfe, 
And  strangled  by  a  merciless  force; 
For  nevermore  was  young  Romilly  seen 
Till  he  rose  a  lifeless  corse." 


384   ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

It  is  said  that  his  disconsolate  mother  built  Bolton 
Abbey  to  coininemorate  the  death  of  her  only  son, 
and  placed  it  in  one  of  the  most  picturesque  spots  in 
England. 

RIPOX   AND    FOUNTAINS. 

Proceeding  still  farther  northward  from  the  charm- 
ing vale  of  Wharfe,  we  come  to  the  valley  of  the 
Ure,  which  flows  into  the  Ousc,  a  main  tributary  of 
the  Humber,  and  to  the  ftunous  cathedral-town  of 
IJipon.  This  is  a  place  of  venerable  antiquity, 
for  it  has  been  over  twelve  centuries  since  a  band 
of  Scotch  monks  came  from  Melrose  to  establish  a 
monastery  on  the  sloping  headland  above  the 
Ure.  A  portion  of  the  ancient  church  then  founded 
is  incorporated  in  the  present  Ivipon  Minster, 
which  was  built  seven  centuries  ago.  It  w-as  burned 
and  partly  injured  by  the  invading  Scots  in  the 
fourteenth  century,  and  subsequently  the  central 
tower  and  greater  part  of  the  nave  were  rebuilt. 
It  was  not  long  ago  entirely  restored.  The  cathedral 
consists  of  a  nave,  with  aisles  extending  the  full 
Avidth  of  the  western  front,  and  rather  broad  for  its 
length ;  the  transepts  are  short.  Parallel  to  the 
choir  on  the  southern  side  is  a  chapter-house.  It  is 
one  of  the  smallest  cathedrals  in  England,  being  two 
hundred  and  seventy  feet  long,  and  other  buildings 
so  encompass  it  as  to  prevent  a  good  near  view. 
There  is  an  ample  churchyard,  but  the  shrine  of  St. 
Wilfrid,  the    founder,  whose  relics  were  the  great 


JBoltou  HBlooOs. 


RIPON  AND  FOUNTAINS.  385 

treasure  of  the  church,  has  long  since  disappeared. 
It  appears  that  in  ancient  times  there  was  great 
quarrelling  over  the  possession  of  his  bones,  and 
that  Archbishop  Odo,  declaring  his  grave  to  be 
neglected,  carried  them  off  to  Canterbury,  but  after 
much  disputing  a  small  portion  of  the  saint's  remains 
were  restored  to  Ripon.  Beneath  the  corner  of  tlic 
nave  is  the  singular  crypt  known  as  Wilfrid's  Needle. 
A  long  passage  leads  to  a  cell  from  which  a  narrow 
window  opens  into  another  passage.  Through  this 
window  we  are  told  that  women  M'hose  virtue  was 
doubted  were  made  to  crawl,  and  if  they  stuck  by 
the  way  were  adjudged  guilty.  This  is  the  oldest 
part  of  the  church,  and  is  regarded  as  the  most  per- 
fect existing  relic  of  the  earliest  age  of  Christianity 
in  Yorkshire.  The  cathedral  contains  some  interest- 
ing monuments,  one  of  which  demonstrates  that 
epitaph-writing  flourished  in  times  agone  at  Ripon. 
It  commemorates,  as  "  a  faint  emblem  of  his  refined 
taste,"  William  Weddell  of  Newby,  "  in  whom  every 
virtue  that  ennobles  the  human  mind  was  united 
with  every  elegance  that  adorns  it."  Ripon  still 
retains  the  ancient  custom  by  which  from  time  im- 
memorial, nightly  at  nine  o'clock,  a  horn  has  been 
sounded  at  the  market-cross,  and  before  the  house 
of  the  "  wakeman  "  or  mayor. 

In  the  neighborhood  of  Ripon  is  the  world- 
renowned  Fountains  Abbey,  of  which  the  remains 
are  in  excellent  preservation,  and  stand  in  a  beauti- 

VoL.  I.— 25 


386  ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

ful  situation  on  the  verge  of  the  fine  estate  of  the 
l\Iarquis  of  Ripen,  Studley  Royal.  The  gates  of 
this  park  are  about  two  miles  from  Ripon,  the  road 
winding  among  the  trees,  beneath  which  herds  of 
deer  are  browsing,  and  leading  up  to  the  mansion, 
in  front  of  which  is  an  attractive  scene.  The  little 
river  Skell,  on  its  way  to  the  Ure,  emerges  from  a 
glen,  and  is  dammed  up  to  form  a  lake,  from  which 
it  tumbles  over  a  pretty  cascade.  The  steep  bank 
opposite  is  covered  with  trees.  John  Aislabie,  who 
had  been  chancellor  of  the  exchequer,  laid  out  this 
park  in  1720,  and  such  repute  did  his  ornamental 
works  attain  that  Studley  was  regarded  as  the  most 
embellished  spot  in  the  North  of  England.  Ulti- 
mately, through  heiresses,  it  passed  into  the  hands  of 
the  present  owner.  The  pleasure-grounds  were  laid 
out  in  the  Dutch  style  then  in  vogue,  and  the  slopes 
of  the  valley  were  terraced,  planted  with  evergreens, 
and  adorned  with  statues.  Modem  landscape-gar- 
dening has  somewhat  varied  the  details,  but  the 
original  design  remains.  In  the  gardens  are  the 
Octagon  Tower,  perched  upon  a  commanding  knoll, 
the  Temple  of  Piety,  near  the  water-side,  and  an 
arbor  known  as  Anne  Boleyn's  Seat,  which  com- 
mands a  superb  view  over  Fountains  Dale  and  the 
ruins  of  the  abbey,  far  below,  across  the  Skell. 
Lot  us  enter  this  pretty  glen,  which  gi'adually 
narrows,  becomes  more  abrupt  and  rocky,  and  Jis 
we  go  along  the  Skell  leads  us  from  the  woods  out 


EIPON  AND  FOUNTAINS.  387 

upon  a  level  grassy  meadow,  at  the  end  of  which 
stand  the  gray  ruins  of  the  famous  Cistercian  abbey. 
The  building's  spread  completely  across  the  glen  to 
its  craggy  sides  on  either  hand.  On  the  right  there 
is  only  room  for  a  road  to  pass  between  the  transept 
and  the  limestone  rock  wliich  rears  on  high  the  trees 
rooted  in  its  crannies,  whose  branches  almost  brush 
the  abbey's  stately  tower.  On  the  other  side  is  the 
little  river,  with  the  conventual  buildings  carried 
across  it  in  more  than  one  place,  the  water  flowing 
through  a  vaulted  tunnel.  These  buildings  extend  to 
the  bases  of  the  opposite  crags.  The  remains  are  of 
great  size,  being  the  most  extensive  and  picturesque 
monastic  ruin  in  England,  and  it  does  not  take  much 
imagination  to  restore  the  glen  to  its  aspect  when  the 
abbey  was  in  full  glory  five  hundred  years  ago.  Its 
founders  came  hither  almost  as  exiles  from  York, 
and  began  building  the  abbey  in  the  fourteenth 
century,  but  it  was  barely  completed  when  Henry 
VIII.  forced  the  dissolution  of  the  monasteries.  It 
was  very  rich,  and  furnished  rare  plunder  when  the 
monks  were  compelled  to  leave  it.  The  close  or 
immediate  groimds  of  the  abbey  contained  about 
eighty  acres,  entered  by  a  gate-house  to  the  west- 
Avard  of  the  church,  the  ruins  of  which  can  still  be 
seen.  Near  by  is  an  old  mill  alongside  the  Skell, 
and  a  picturesque  bridge  crosses  the  stream,  while 
on  a  neighboring  knoll  are  some  ancient  yews 
which    are  believed  to  have   sheltered  the  earliest 


388    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

settlers,  and  are  called  the  '•Seven  Sisters."  But, 
unfortunately,  only  two  now  remain,  gnarled  and 
twisted,  with  decaying  trunks  and  falling  limbs — 
ruins  in  fact  that  are  as  venerable  as  Fountains 
Abbey  itself.  Botanists  say  they  are  twelve  hun- 
dred years  old,  and  that  they  were  full-grown  trees 
■when  the  exiles  from  York  first  encamped  alongside 
the  Skell. 

Entering  the  close,  the  ruins  of  the  abbey  church 
are  seen  in  better  preservation  than  the  other  build- 
ings. The  roof  is  gone,  for  its  woodwork  was  used 
to  melt  down  the  lead  by  zealous  Reformers  in  the 
sixteenth  century,  and  green  grass  has  replaced  the 
pavement.  The  ruins  disclose  a  noble  temple,  the 
tower  rising  one  hundred  and  sixty-eight  feet.  In 
the  eastern  transept  is  the  beautiful  "  Chapel  of  the 
Nine  Altars  "  with  its  tall  and  slender  columns,  some 
of  the  clustering  shafts  having  fallen.  For  some 
distance  soutliward  and  eastward  from  the  church 
extend  the  ruins  of  the  other  convent-buildings.  In 
former  times  they  were  used  as  a  stone-quarry  for 
the  neighborhood,  many  of  the  wails  being  levelled 
to  the  ground,  but  since  the  last  century  they  have 
been  scrupulously  preserved.  The  plan  is  readily 
traced,  for  excavations  have  been  made  to  display 
better  the  ruins.  South  of  the  nave  of  the  church 
Avas  the  cloister-court.  On  one  side  were  the  transept 
and  chapter-house,  and  on  the  other  a  long  corridor 
supporting  the  dormitory.     This  was  one   hundred 


irouutains  Ubboj,  "Wave,  Xoohlno  W,cst. 


RIPON  AND  FOUNTAINS.  389 

yards  long,  extending  across  the  river,  and  abutting 
against  the  crags  on  the  other  side.  South  of  the 
cloister-court  were  the  chapter-house,  buttery,  re- 
fectory, kitchen,  and  other  apartments.  To  the 
eastward  was  a  group  of  buildings  tenninating  in  a 
grand  house  for  the  abbot,  which  also  bridged  the 
river.  All  these  are  now  in  picturesque  ruins,  the 
long  corridor,  with  its  vaulted  roof  supported  by  a 
central  row  of  columns  with  broad  arches,  being 
considered  one  of  the  most  impressive  religious  re- 
mains in  England.  One  of  the  chief  uses  to  which 
the  Foiintains  Abbey  stone-quarry  was  devoted  was 
the  building,  in  the  reign  of  James  I.,  of  a  fine 
Jacobean  mansion  as  the  residence  for  its  then 
owner,  Sir  Stephen  Proctor.  This  is  Fountains 
Hall,  an  elaborate  structure  of  that  period,  which 
stands  near  the  abbey  gateway,  and  to  a  great 
extent  atones,  by  its  quaint  attractiveness,  for  the 
vandalism  that  despoiled  the  abbey  to  furnish 
materials  for  its  construction.  In  fact,  the  mournful 
reflection  is  always  uppermost  in  viewing  the  re- 
mains of  this  famous  place  that  it  would  have  been 
a  grand  old  ruin  could  it  have  been  preserved,  but 
the  spoilers  who  plundered  it  for  their  own  profit  are 
said  to  have  discovered,  in  the  fleeting  character  of 
the  riches  thus  obtained,  that  ill-gotten  gains  never 
prosper. 


390    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

RICHMOND  CASTLE. 

Proceeding  northward  from  Ripon,  and  crossing 
over  into  the  valley  of  the  river  Swale,  we  reach 
one  of  the  most  picturesquely  located  towns  of 
England — Richmond,  whose  great  castle  is  among 
the  best  English  remains  of  the  Norman  era.  The 
river  flows  over  a  broken  and  rocky  bed  around  the 
base  of  a  cliff,  and  crowning  the  precipice  above  is 
the  great  castle  magnificent  even  in  decay.  It  was 
founded  in  the  reign  of  William  the  Conqueror  by 
Alan  the  Red,  Duke  of  Brittany,  ^vho  was  created 
Earl  of  Richmond,  and  it  covers  a  space  of  about 
five  acres  on  a  rock  projecting  over  the  river,  the 
prominent  tower  of  the  venerable  keep  being  sur- 
rounded by  walls  and  buildings.  A  lane  leads  up 
from  the  market-place  of  the  town  to  the  castle-gate, 
alongside  of  which  are  Robin  Hood's  Tower  and  the 
Golden  Tower,  the  latter  named  from  a  tradition  of 
a  treasure  being  once  found  there.  The  Scolland's 
Hall,  a  fine  specimen  of  Norman  work,  adjoins  this 
tower.  The  keep  is  one  hundred  feet  high  and 
furnished  with  walls  eleven  feet  thick,  time  having 
had  little  effect  upon  this  noble  structure,  one  of  the 
most  perfect  Norman  keep-towers  remaining  in  Eng- 
land. There  is  a  grand  view  from  the  battlements 
over  the  romantic  valley  of  the  Swale.  In  the  vil- 
lage is  an  old  gray  tower,  the  only  remains  of  a 
Franciscan    monastery    founded    in    the    thirteenth 


RICHMOND  CASTLE.  391 

century,  and  the  ruins  of  Easby  Abbey,  dating  from 
the  twolftli  century,  are  not  fur  away ;  its  granary  is 
Htill  in  use.  The  valley  of  the  .Swale  may  be  pur- 
sued for  a  long  distance,  furnishing  constant  displays 
of  romantic  scenery,  or,  if  that  is  preferred,  excellent 
trout-fishing. 

The  romantic  valley  of  the  Tees  makes  the  north- 
ern boundary  of  Yorkshire,  dividing  it  from  Dur- 
ham. Not  fur  over  the  border  is  the  woollen  and 
carpet  manufacturing  town  of  Darlington,  also  noted 
as  the  terminus  of  the  first  steam  passenger  railway 
line  opened  in  England — the  Stockton  and  Darling- 
ton Hallway — constructed  in  182."3,  mainly  through 
the  enterprise  of  Edward  Pease,  then  a  prominent 
Quaker  townsman  of  Darlington.  The  earliest  loco- 
motive used  on  this  railway  is  preserved  in  a  glass 
house  on  the  station  platform.  This  road  went  down 
the  valley  aniong  the  iron  furnaces  to  the  seaport  of 
Stockton-on-Tees,  near  the  head  of  the  estuary  made 
by  Tees  liay  on  the  North  Sea.  The  Tees  Rivor 
valley  to  the  westward  as  it  comes  out  of  the  hills  is 
most  beautifid.  Here  is  the  High  Force,  one  of  the 
highest  and  finest  waterfalls  in  England,  falling  sixty 
feet.  Every  cataract  in  this  region  is  a  "  Force." 
Just  south  of  the  Tees,  at  Bowes,  is  the  reputed 
original  of  Dotheboys  Hall,  the  peculiar  Yorkshire 
school  made  famous  by  Dickens. 


392    ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVK 

YORK. 

From  the  liigh  hills  in  the  neighborhood  of  Foun- 
tains Dale  there  is  a  magnificent  view  of  the  plain 
of  York,  and  we  will  now  proceed  down  the  valley 
of  the  Ouse  to  the  venerable  settlement,  originally 
the  Caer  Evrauc  of  the  Britons,  which  the  Romans 
called  Eboracum,  and  now  the  capital  of  a  county 
exceeding  in  extent  many  kingdoms  and  principal- 
ities of  Europe.  This  ancient  British  stronghold 
has  given  its  name  to  the  metropolis  of  the  New 
World,  but  the  modern  Babylon  on  the  Hudson  has 
far  outstripped  the  little  city  of  about  sixty-five 
thousand  people  on  the  equally  diminutive  Ouse.  It 
was  Ebrane,  the  king  of  the  Brlgantes,  who  is  said 
to  have  founded  York,  but  so  long  ago  that  the  story 
is  believed  a  myth.  Whatever  its  origin,  a  settle- 
ment was  there  before  the  Christian  era,  but  nothing 
certain  is  known  of  it  beyond  the  fact  that  it  existed 
when  the  Romans  invaded  Britain  and  captured 
York,  with  other  strongholds,  in  the  first  century 
of  the  Christian  era.  Eboracum  was  made  the 
head-quarters  of  their  sixth  legion,  and  soon  became 
the  chief  city  of  a  district  now  rich  in  relics  of 
the  Roman  occupation,  their  dead  being  still  found 
thickly  buried  around  the  town.  Portions  of  the 
walls  of  Eboracum  remain,  among  them  being  that 
remarkable  relic,  the  tower,  polygonal  in  plan, 
which    is   known    as    the    Multangular  Tower,   and 


YORK.  893 

■wliich  marks  the  south-western  angle  of  the  ancient 
Roman  city.  Not  far  away  are  the  ilihipidatecl  ruins 
of  St.  Mary's  Abbey,  once  one  of  the  wealthiest  and 
prnud«'8t  roligious  houses  in  tho  North  of  England, 
but  with  little  now  left  but  portions  of  the  founda- 
tions, a  gateway,  and  the  north  and  west  walls  of  the 
nave.  This  abbey  was  founded  in  the  eleventh 
century,  and  it  was  from  here  that  the  exiled  monks 
who  built  Fountains  Abbey  were  driven  out.  This 
ruin  has  been  in  its  present  condition  during  over 
two  hundred  and  fifty  years. 

For  more  than  three  centuries  Eboracum  was  a 
great  Roman  city.  Here  came  the  emperor  Severus 
and  died  in  211,  his  body  being  cremated  and  the 
ashes  conveyed  to  Rome.  AVhen  the  empire  was 
divided,  Britain  fell  to  the  share  of  Constantius 
Chlorus,  and  he  made  Eboracum  his  home,  dying 
there  in  305.  Constantine  the  Great,  his  son,  was 
first  proclaimed  emperor  at  Eboracum.  AVhen  the 
Romans  departed  evil  d.iys  fell  upon  York  :  the  bar- 
barians destroyed  it,  and  it  was  not  till  027  that  it 
reappeared  in  history,  when  Eadwine,  Kingof  North- 
umbria,  was  baptized  there  by  St.  Raulinus  on 
Easter  Day,  a  litllo  wooden  church  being  built  for 
the  purpose.  Then  began  its  ecclesiastical  eminence, 
for  Paulinus  was  the  first  Archbishop  of  York,  be- 
ginning a  line  of  prelates  that  has  continued  un- 
broken since,  and  York  was  the  centre  from  which 
Christianity  spread  through  Northern  England.     In 


394  ENGLAND,  PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

the  eighth  century  the  Northmen  began  their  incur- 
sions, and  from  spoilers  ultimately  became  settlers. 
York  prospered,  being  thronged  with  Danish  mer- 
chants, and  in  the  tenth  century  it  had  thirty  thou- 
sand population.  In  King  Harold's  reign  the  North- 
men attacked  and  captured  the  town,  when  Harold  sur- 
prised and  defeated  them,  killing  their  leader  Tostig, 
but  no  sooner  had  he  won  the  victory  than  he  had  to 
hasten  southward  to  meet  William  the  Norman,  and 
be  in  turn  vanquished  and  slain.  York  resisted 
William,  but  he  ultimately  conquered  the  city  and 
built  a  castle  there,  but  being  rebellious  the  people 
attacked  the  castle.  He  returned  and  chastised  them, 
and  built  a  second  castle  on  the  Ouse ;  but  the  dis- 
content deepened,  and  a  Danish  fleet  appearing  in 
the  Humber  there  was  another  rebellion,  and  the 
Norman  garrison  firing  the  houses  around  the  castle 
to  clear  the  ground  for  its  better  defence,  the  greater 
part  of  the  city  was  consumed.  While  this  was 
going  on  the  Danes  arrived,  attacked  and  captured' 
both  castles,  slaughtered  their  entire  garrisons  of 
three  thousand  men,  and  were  practically  unopposed 
by  the  discontented  people.  Then  it  was  that  the 
stalwart  Norman  William  swore  "  by  the  splendor  of 
God"  to  avenge  himself  on  Northumbria,  and,  keep- 
ing his  pledge,  he  devastated  the  entire  country 
north  of  the  Humber. 

York    continued    to  exist  without  making  much 
history  for  several  centuries,  till  the  Wars  of  the 


YORK.  395 

Koscs  came  between  the  rival  houses  of  York  and 
I^ancastcr.  In  this  York  bore  its  full  part,  but  it  was 
at  first  the  Lancastrian  king  who  was  most  frequently 
found  at  York,  and  not  the  duke  who  bore  the  title. 
IJut  after  Towton  Fiohl,  on  Palm  Sunday,  March  29, 
14G1,  the  most  sanguinary  battle  ever  fought  in 
England,  one  hundred  thousand  men  being  engaged, 
the  news  of  their  defeat  was  brought  to  the  Lancas- 
trian king  Henry  and  Queen  ^Lirgarct  at  York,  and 
they  soon  became  fugitives,  and  their  youthful 
adversary,  the  Duke  of  York,  was  crowned  Edward 
IV.  in  York  Minster.  In  the  Civil  AVar  it  Avas  in 
York  that  Charles  I.  took  refuge,  and  from  that  city 
first  issued  his  declaration  of  war  against  the  Parlia- 
ment. For  two  years  York  was  loyal  to  the  king, 
and  then  the  fierce  siege  took  place  in  which  the 
Parliamentary  forces  ruined  St.  Clary's  Abbey  by 
undermining  and  destroying  its  tower.  Prince 
Rupert  raised  this  siege,  but  the  respite  was  not  long. 
Marston  i^Ioor  saw  the  king  defeated,  Rupert's 
troopers  being,  as  the  historian  tells  us,  made  as 
"  stubble  to  the  swords  of  Cromweirs  Ironsides." 
The  king's  shattered  army  retreated  to  York,  and  was 
pursued,  and  in  a  fortnight  York  surrendered  to  the 
Parliamentaiy  forces.  The  city  languished  after- 
M'ards,  losing  its  trade,  and  developing  vast  pride, 
but  equal  poverty.  Since  the  days  of  railways, 
however,  it  has  become  a  very  important  junction, 
and  has  thus  somewhat  revived  its  activity. 


396  ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE   AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

The  walls  of  York  are  almost  as  complete  as  those 
of  Chester,  Avhile  its  ancient  gateways  arc  in  much 
better  preservation.  The  gateways,  called  "  bars," 
are  among  the  marked  features  of  the  city,  and  the 
streets  leading  to  them  are  called  "  gates."  The 
chief  of  these  is  Micklegate,  the  highroad  leading  to 
the  south,  the  most  important  street  in  York,  and 
JMicklegate  Bar  is  the  most  graceful  in  design  of 
all,  coming  down  from  Tudor  days,  with  turrets 
and  battlements  pierced  with  cross-shaped  loopholes 
and  surmounted  by  small  stone  figures  of  warriors. 
It  was  on  this  bar  that  the  head  of  the  Duke  of 
York  -vvas  exposed,  and  the  ghastly  spectacle  greeted 
his  son,  Edward  IV.,  as  he  rode  into  the  town  after 
Towton  Field.  It  did  not  take  long  to  strike  off  the 
heads  of  several  distinguished  prisoners  and  put 
them  in  his  place  as  an  expiatory  offering.  Here 
also  whitened  the  heads  of  traitors  down  to  as  late 
as  the  last  Jacobite  rebellion.  One  of  the  buttresses 
of  the  walls  of  York  is  the  Red  Tower,  so  called 
from  the  red  brick  of  which  it  is  built.  These  walls 
and  gates  are  full  of  interesting  relics  of  the  olden 
time,  and  they  are  still  preserved  to  show  the  line 
of  circumvallation  of  the  ancient  walled  city.  But 
the  chief  glory  of  York  is  its  famous  minster,  on 
which  the  hand  of  time  has  been  lightly  laid. 
AVhcn  King  Eadwine  was  baptized  in  the  little 
wooden  church  hastily  erected  for  the  purpose,  he 
began  building  at  the  same  place,  at  the  suggestion 


YOKK.  397 

of  Pauliniu,  a  larger  aiul  more  noble  basilica  of  stone, 
wherein  the  little  church  was  to  be  included.  IJut 
before  it  was  completed  the  king  was  slain,  and  his 
head  was  brought  to  York  and  buried  in  the  portico 
of  the  basilica.  This  chureh  fill  into  decay,  and 
was  burned  in  the  eighth  century.  On  its  site  was 
built  a  much  larger  minster,  which  was  consumed  in 
AVilliam  the  Conqueror's  time,  when  the  greater  part 
of  York  was  burned.  From  its  ashes  rose  the  pres- 
ent niagniticent  minster,  portions  of  which  were 
building  from  the  eleventh  to  the  fifteenth  century, 
it  being  completed  as  we  now  sec  it  in  1470,  and 
reconsecrated  as  the  cathedral  of  St.  Peter  with 
great  pomp  in  1472.  Its  chief  treasure  was  the 
shrine  of  St.  William,  the  nephew  of  King  Stephen, 
a  holy  nian  of  singularly  gentle  character.  When 
he  came  into  York  it  is  said  the  pressure  of  the 
crowd  was  so  great  that  it  caused  the  fall  of  a  bridge 
over  the  Ouse,  but  the  saint  by  a  miracle  saved  all 
their  lives.  The  shrine  was  destroyed  at  the  Ref- 
ormation, and  the  relics  buried  in  the  nave,  where 
they  were  found  in  the  last  century.  York  Minster 
remained  almost  unchanged  until  1829,  when  a 
lunatic  named  Martin  concealed  himself  one  night  in 
the  cathedral  and  set  fire  to  the  woodwork  of  the 
choir,  afterwards  escai)ing  through  a  transej)t-win- 
dow.  The  fire  destr«»yed  the  timber  roofs  of  the 
choir  and  nave  and  the  great  organ.  I^Iartin  was 
arrested,  and  confined  in  an  asylum  until  he  died. 


398  ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND  DESCRIPTIVE. 

The  restoration  cost  $350,000,  and  liatl  not  long 
been  completed  when  some  workmen  accidentally 
set  tire  to  the  south-western  tower,  which  gutted  it, 
destroyed  the  bells,  and  burned  the  roof  of  the 
nave.  This  mischief  cost  $125,000  to  repair,  and 
the  southern  transept,  which  Avas  considered  unsafe, 
has  since  been  partially  rebuilt. 

Few  English  cathedrals  exceed  York  Minster  in 
dignity  and  massive  grandeur.  It  is  the  largest 
Gothic  church  in  the  kingdom,  and  contains  one  of 
the  biggest  of  bells,  "  Old  Peter,"  weighing  ten  and 
three-quarters  tons,  which  is  struck  regularly  every 
day  at  noon.  The  minster  is  five  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  feet  long,  two  hundred  and  twenty-two  feet 
wide,  and  ninety-nine  feet  high  in  the  nave,  and  its 
towers  rise  about  two  hundred  feet,  the  imposing 
central  tower  being  two  hundred  and  sixteen  feet 
high.  Its  great  charms  are  its  windows,  most  of 
them  containing  the  original  stained  glass,  some  of 
it  six  hundred  years  old.  The  east  window  is  one 
of  the  largest  stained-glass  windows  in  the  world, 
seventy-seven  by  thirty-two  feet,  and  is  of  exquisite 
design,  being  made  by  John  Thornton  of  Coventry 
in  1408,  who  was  paid  one  dollar  per  week  wages 
and  got  a  present  of  fifty  dollars  when  he  finished  it. 
At  the  end  of  one  transept  is  the  Five  Sisters  Win- 
dow, designed  by  five  nuns,  each  plaiming  a  tall, 
narrow  sash ;  and  a  beautiful  rose-window  is  at  the 
end  of  the  other  transept.     High  up  in  the  nave  the 


YORK.  399 

fitatuc  of  St.  George  stands  on  one  side  defying  the 
dragon,  who  pokes  out  his  head  on  the  other.  Its 
tombs  arc  among  the  minster's  greatest  curiosities. 
The  effigy  of  Archbishop  Walter  de  Groy,  six  hun- 
dred and  tifty  years  old,  is  stretched  out  in  an  open 
coffin  lying  under  a  superb  canopy,  and  the  corpse 
instead  of  being  in  the  ground  is  overhead  in  the 
canopy.  This  is  the  finest  monument  in  the  minster. 
All  the  walls  are  full  of  memorial  tablets — a  few 
modern  ones  to  English  soldiers,  but  most  of  them 
ancient.  Strange  tombs  are  also  set  in  the  walls, 
bearing  effigies  of  the  dead.  Sir  AV'illiam  Gee 
stands  up  with  his  two  wives,  one  on  each  side,  and 
his  six  children — all  eight  statues  having  their  hands 
folded.  Others  sit  up  like  Punch  and  Judy,  the 
women  dressed  in  hoops,  farthingales,  and  rufls,  the 
highest  fashions  of  their  age.  Here  is  buried  Went- 
worth,  second  Earl  of  Strafford,  and  scores  of  arch- 
bishops, including  Archbishop  Scrope,  beheaded  in 
1405.  The  body  of  the  famous  Hotspur  is  entombed 
in  the  wall  beneath  the  great  east  window.  Burke's 
friend  Saville  is  buried  here,  that  statesman  having 
written  his  epitaph.  The  outside  of  the  minster  has 
all  sorts  of  grotesque  gargoyles,  protuberances  which, 
according  to  the  ancient  style  of  church-building, 
represent  the  evil  spirits  that  religion  casts  out. 
Adjoining  the  north  transept,  an<l  approached 
tijrnugh  a  beautiful  vestibule,  is  the  chapter-house, 
an  octagonal  building  sixty-three  feet    in   diameter 


400  ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND   DESCRIPTIVE. 

and  surmounted  by  a  pyramidal  roof.  Seven  of  its 
sides  are  large  stained-glass  windows,  and  the  ceiling 
is  a  magnificent  work.  This  is  considered  the  most 
beautiful  chapter-house  in  England.  The  Arch- 
bishop of  York  is  also  given  the  dignity  of  "  the 
Primate  of  England,"  and  he  receives  a  salary  of 
$50,000  annually. 

York  Castle  occupied  a  peninsula  between  the 
Ousc  and  a  branch  called  the  Foss.  Of  this,  Clif- 
ford's Tower,  built  in  the  thirteenth  century,  is  about 
all  of  the  ancient  work  that  remains.  It  rises  on  its 
mound  high  above  the  surrounding  buildings,  and  was 
the  keep  of  the  ancient  fortress,  constructed  accord- 
ing to  a  remarkable  and  unique  plan,  consisting  of 
parts  of  four  cylinders  running  into  each  other.  It 
dates  from  Edward  I,,  but  the  entrance  was  built  by 
Clifford,  Earl  of  Cumberland,  its  governor  under 
Charles  I.  The  interior  of  the  tower  was  after- 
wards burned,  and  George  Fox,  the  founder  of  the 
Society  of  Friends,  who  wiis  imprisoned  there, 
planted  a  walnut  tree  within  the  tower  which  is 
still  growing.  It  was  in  the  keep  of  the  Norman 
castle,  which  this  towdr  replaced,  that  the  massacre 
of  the  Jews,  which  grew  out  of  race-jealousy  at 
their  great  wealth,  occurred  in  1190.  On  March 
16th  the  house  of  Benet,  the  leading  Jew  in  York, 
was  sacked  by  a  mob  and  his  wife  and  children 
murdered.  Five  hundred  of  his  countrymen  then 
sought  refuge  in  the  castle,  and  those  who  remained 


YORK.  401 

outside  were  killed.  The  mob  besieged  the  castle, 
led  by  a  hermit  from  the  neighborhood  "  famed  for 
zeal  and  holiness,"  who  was  clothed  in  white  robes, 
and  each  morning  celebrated  mass  and  inflamed  the 
fury  of  the  besiegers  by  his  preaching.  At  last  he 
ventured  too  near  the  walls,  and  was  brained  by  a 
stone.  Battering-rams  were  then  brought  up,  and  a 
night's  carouse  was  indulged  in  before  the  work  of 
knocking  down  the  castle  began.  Within  was  a 
different  scene  :  the  Jews  were  without  food  or  hope. 
An  aged  rabbi,  who  had  come  as  a  missionary  from 
the  East,  and  was  venerated  almost  as  a  prophet, 
exhorted  his  brethren  to  render  up  freely  their  lives 
to  God  rather  than  await  death  at  the  enemy's 
hands.  Nearly  all  decided  to  follow  his  council ; 
they  fired  the  castle,  destroyed  their  property,  killed 
their  wives  and  children,  and  then  turned  their 
swords  upon  themselves.  Day  broke,  and  the  small 
remnant  who  dan-d  not  die  called  from  the  walls  of 
the  blazing  castle  that  they  were  anxious  for  baptism 
and  "  the  faith  and  peace  of  Christ."  They  were 
promised  everything,  opened  the  gates,  and  were  all 
massacred.  In  later  years  York  Castle  has  been 
used  as  a  prison,  and  has  enclosed  some  well-knd'wn 
prisoners,  among  them  Eugene  Aram,  and  Dick 
Tur{)in,  who  was  hanged  there.  The  York  elections 
and  niass-ni<M'ting.s  are  held  in  the  courtyard.  Hero 
Wilberforco,  who  long  represented  York  in  Parlia- 
ment, spoke  in   1784,  when  IJoswell  wrote  of  hini : 

Vol.  I.— 28 


402  ENGLAND,   PICTURESQUE  AND   DESCRIPTIVE. 

"  I  saw  what  seemed  a  mere  shrimp  mount  upon  the 
table,  but  as  I  listened  he  grew  and  grew  until  the 
shrimp  became  a  whale."  The  York  streets  are  full 
of  old  houses,  many  with  porches  and  overhanging 
fronts.  One  of  the  most  curious  rows  is  the 
Shambles,  on  a  narrow  street  and  dating  from  the 
fourteenth  century.  A  little  way  out  of  town  is  the 
village  of  Holgate,  which  was  the  residence  of 
Lindley  Murray  the  grammarian.  Guy  Fawkcs 
is  said  to  have  been  a  native  of  York,  and  this 
strange  and  antique  old  city,  we  are  also  credibly 
assured,  was  in  1632  the  birthplace  of  Robinson 
Crusoe. 

"  Each  has  his  destined  time :  a  span 
Is  all  the  heritage  of  man  : 
'Tis  virtue's  part,  by  deeds  of  praise, 
To  lengthen  fame  through  after-days." — Coxingtox. 


END   OF  VOLUME  L 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY,  LOS  ANGELES 

COLLEGE  LIBRARY 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


MAR     3 19771 


Book  Slip-35m-7,'63(D8634s4)4280 


II 


UCUk-CoN«««  Ubrary 

DA  625  C77e  1899  V.I 


L  005  674  874  2 


■■•SffS^JfSl?^  lawRf  F/»c«jTv 


A     001  010  142     6 


CoUege 
Library 


DA 

625 

C77e 

1899 

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